Hushpuppi appeals a sentence of 11 years for internet fraud
Ramon “Hushpuppi” Abbas’ legal team has filed a notice to appeal the 11-year sentence he was given for computer fraud and money laundering. Abbas was found guilty of the crimes.
Attorney John Iweanoge of Washington filed the appeal on Monday, and it was limited to the judgment handed down by District Judge Otis D. Wright II.
Hushpuppi was detained by the federal government after being caught in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in June 2020. He was later expelled from the country.
Hushpuppi received an 11-year prison term in November 2022 and was mandated to pay $1,732,841 in restitution to two fraud victims. In April 2021, he entered a guilty plea to one count of conspiring to commit money laundering.
According to United States Attorney Martin Estrada, “Abbas boasted on social media about his opulent lifestyle, a lifestyle funded by his involvement in transnational fraud and money laundering conspiracies targeting victims around the world.”
Mr. Abbas formed a scheme to launder money obtained from a variety of crimes, including bank cyber-heists, business email compromise (BEC) schemes, and other online frauds, with Ghaleb Alaumary, a 37-year-old money launderer from Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. Additionally, they used account details for banks in Romania and Bulgaria to launder money that had been stolen from a bank in Malta.
A New York-based law firm was tricked into sending $922,857 by Mr. Abbas in 2019 to an account that a co-conspirator fraudulently controlled in someone else’s name.
In November 2020, Mr. Alaumary admitted guilt to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering after being charged separately. He was sentenced to 140 months in federal prison and must also pay more than $30 million in reparations.
