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SANTA
ANA – A Laguna Niguel man was convicted of orchestrating a
multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme to finance B-movies that starred
celebrities like mixed martial arts fighter Quinton “Rampage” Jackson
and rapper Flavor Fav.
Mahmoud Karkehabadi, 56, was found guilty
by an Orange County jury of 51 felony counts of securities fraud and
grand theft, plus sentencing enhancements for aggravated white-collar
crime and excessive taking.
He now faces a 30-year term in prison
at his March 25 sentencing by Superior Court Judge Richard Toohey,
Deputy Attorney General Patricia Fusco said.
But
the same jury of six men and six women found co-defendant Timothy Cho,
56, not guilty of 30 felony counts. Cho was president of Newport Coast
Entertainment, which raised money to finance Karkehabadi’s movies.
He
walked out Toohey’s courtroom smiling. “I’m so relieved,” Cho said.
“This has been hanging over my head for two and a half years. It was
very scary.”
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