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PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
October 10, 2001
 United States Attorney Jim Letten and Terry L. Stuart, the Special Agent in Charge of the New Orleans Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation announced today that United States District Judge Eldon E. Fallon sentenced 12 individuals to a total of over 11 years imprisonment for failing to report over $4.5 million in corporate and personal income resulting in an underpayment of at least $1.5 million in taxes. The charges were based on the defendants’ underreporting of income from a number of New Orleans area convenience stores to the Internal Revenue Service and sending this income in form of checks made to cash in amounts less than $10,000 in order to avoid reporting requirements for the exporting of funds to Ramallah to construct a family compound. The individual defendants were also ordered to pay over $1,500,000 in restitution to the IRS for taxes not paid and an additional $3600 in special assessments.
In the same proceeding, Judge Fallon sentenced 8 corporations to make restitution in the amount of $160,000, to forfeit to the United States over $617,000 representing monetary instruments sent out of the country without the filing of required reports with the Internal Revenue Service and to pay an additional $6400 in special assessments. These corporations were convicted of failing to report and pay over $160,000 in sales taxes to the state of Louisiana.
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Bilal A. Hindi, 38, of 8010 Morrison, New Orleans, La., was sentenced to serve 37 months in prison and ordered to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service in the amount of $479,059. His brother, Rabah A. Hindi, 36, also of 8010 Morrison, New Orleans, La., was sentenced to serve 37 months in prison and ordered to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service in the amount of $536,883. Other defendants received the following sentences: Omar Abdallah Ahmad, 39 of 12345 I-10 Service Rd., New Orleans Louisiana was sentenced to serve 12 months and 1 day in prison and ordered to pay to the Internal Revenue Service, restitution in the amount of $27,103; Walid Ahmad, 37 of 12345 I-10 Service Rd., New Orleans Louisiana was sentenced to 12 months and 1 day in prison and ordered to pay to the Internal Revenue Service, restitution in the amount of $33,555; Abdelrahim H. Ayyad, 42 of 2541 N. Claiborne Ave. was sentenced to serve 12 months and 1 day in prison and ordered to pay to the Internal Revenue Service restitution in the amount of $170,531; Ahmad Afif Ayyad, 34, of 325 S. Broad Street, New Orleans, La. was sentenced to serve 4 months in prison and 4 months home detention and ordered to pay to the Internal Revenue Service, restitution in the amount of $17,020; Zuhdi Mahmoud Ayyad, 34, of 7039 Ligustrum Dr., New Orleans was sentenced to serve 6 months home detention and 5 years probation and ordered to pay to the Internal Revenue Service, restitution in the amount of $10,105; Ayed H. Hammad, 37, of 210 38th St., New Orleans, La. was sentenced to serve 4 months in prison and 4 months home detention and ordered to pay to the Internal Revenue Service restitution in the amount of $17,020; Abdelaziz Hindi, 60, of Ramallah, was sentenced to serve 4 months home detention and 3 years probation and ordered to pay to the Internal Revenue Service restitution in the amount of $22,391; Ahmad Hindi, 26, of 8010 Morrison Rd., was sentenced to serve 4 months in prison and 4 months home detention and ordered to pay to the Internal Revenue Service restitution in the amount of $66,000; Mashkoor Ali Khan, 53, of 1600 Peach St., Metairie, La. was sentenced to serve 4 months home detention and 5 years probation and ordered to pay to the Internal Revenue Service restitution in the amount of $6,781; Ismail Mustafa Odeh, 31, of 1641 Louisiana Ave. was sentenced to serve 12 months and1 day in prison and ordered to pay to the Internal Revenue Service restitution in the amount of $33,500.
Judge Fallon sentenced the eight corporations which had pled guilty to structuring transactions involving monetary instruments in order avoid reporting requirements for overseas financial transactions and mail fraud violations relating to the underpayment of states sales tax as follows: Basha Inc. which operates Louisiana Meat Market located at 1641 Louisiana Ave., New Orleans, La., to pay restitution to the Louisiana Department of Revenue in the amount of $25,944 and to forfeit to the United States $79,415.31; Dalal, Inc. which operates City Farm Market located at 3800 St. Bernard Ave., New Orleans, La., and to pay restitution to the Louisiana Department of Revenue in the amount .of $10,235; Family Farm, Inc. which operates Family Farm Market located at 2541 N. Claiborne., New Orleans, La., to pay restitution to the Louisiana Department of Revenue in the amount of $40,465 and to forfeit to the United States $47,817.16; Hindi, Inc. which operates Save More Market, 2956 Nicholson Dr., Baton Rouge, La., to pay restitution to the Louisiana Department of Revenue in the amount .of $15,835; Malak, Inc. which operates Crowder Discount Market located at 8426 I-10 Service Rd., to pay restitution to the Louisiana Department of Revenue in the amount of $8,142 and to forfeit to the United States $120,756.95; Nor, Inc. which operates Downman Discount Market located at 4827 Downman Rd, New Orleans, La., to pay restitution to the Louisiana Department of Revenue in the amount of $22,918 and to forfeit to the United States $106,587.90; Salam, Inc. which operates Broad Meat Market, 325 S. Broad Street, New Orleans, La., to pay restitution to the Louisiana Department of Revenue in the amount of $24,297 and to forfeit to the United States $112,403.74; Serena, Inc. which operates Read Discount Market located at 7045 Read Blvd., New Orleans, La., to pay restitution to the Louisiana Department of Revenue in the amount of $4,469 and to forfeit to the United States $171,648.06.
The tax investigation which led to the filing of these charges was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division. Also participating in the initial investigaiton were the United States Secret Service, the Inspector General of the United States Department of Agriculture, the United States Customs Service, the Louisiana Department of Revenue and the State of Louisiana, Department of Social Services, Office of Family Support, Fraud and Recovery Section. The case was prosecuted by Barry Jonas, a Trial Attorney for the United States Department of Justice’s Tax Division and Assistant United States Attorneys Mike Magner and Robert Boitmann.
United States Attorney Jim Letten stated that this prosecution shows that his office and the Internal Revenue Service/Criminal Investigation Division are committed to strict enforcement of the income tax laws and the Internal Revenue Service laws requiring the documentation of overseas transfers of funds. He pointed out that the orders of assessment, forfeiture and restitution mean that in addition to receiving the significant jail sentences imposed the defendants have been deprived of over $2,300,000, negating the financial gain which was the goal of their criminal activity.
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