|
|
| |
| |
Criminal Records - Most Wanted |
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
Profile |
|
| |
Name: Farhad
"Fred"
Monem
|
|
| |
Sex: Male |
|
| |
Race: White, Other |
|
| |
Age Now: 50 |
|
| |
Height: 5'10" |
|
| |
Weight: 210 lbs. |
|
| |
Hair (Color, Description, Facial Hair): Black
Wears his hair short
Receding hairline
Mustache
Goatee |
|
| |
Eyes (Color and Correction): Brown |
|
| |
Wanted for :
Conspiracy, Oregon;
2007
Mail Fraud, Oregon;
2007
Wire Fraud, Oregon;
2007
Bribery ;
2007
Money Laundering ;
2007
Interstate Travel In Aid Of Racketeering ;
2007
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
Location(s) |
|
| |
Last Seen : Buffalo, NY
Cops say that Monem is known to have traveled to Buffalo, N.Y. on July 1st, 2007. |
|
| |
Possible Location : Iran
Authorities say that Monem has ties to California, Canada, and Iran. |
|
| |
Last Known : Unkown |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Traits |
|
| |
Iranian |
|
| |
Prison food buyer |
|
| |
Food salesman |
|
| |
Speaks Farsi and English |
|
| |
Alleged heavy user of marijuana, hashish, and alcohol |
|
| |
He likes to gamble |
|
| |
Monem reportedly has a funny walk and has a hard time pronouncing 'v' and 'w' sounds.
He would pronounce the word 'vegetables' as 'wegetables.' |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Case Story |
|
| |
Feds: Con Man's Shifty Deals Yields Hefty Kickbacks |
|
| |
When 49-year-old Farhad Monem fled his native Iran to avoid military conscription, authorities say that he became a naturalized American citizen and went by the name 'Fred'. But Fred Monem made another name for himself in the U.S. as the state of Oregon's food service administrator. The FBI says he was in charge of buying every scrap of food to feed 13,000 inmates at every prison and correctional facility in Oregon.
At first, Monem was praised for drastically reducing the cost of feeding the prisoners by purchasing distressed and bulk foods for the inmates. The savings he made reduced the per-inmate food costs in Oregon to among the lowest in the U.S. Authorities say that Monem's crime wasn't selling food that was past the sell-by date, it was extorting and bribing money from numerous food companies.
Then in October 2006, a whistle-blower contacted the FBI and told them that Monem was involved in a multi-million dollar kickback and extortion scheme. The FBI believes that Monem had struck a deal with the owners of a California food supplier to buy distressed foods. He agreed to pay higher than market prices in exchange for skimming a portion of the company's profits. Authorities tell AMW that it was this and other similar sweet deals that earned him more than $1.3 million in kickbacks. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Cash, Guns, And Drugs |
|
| |
To catch Monem in the act, the FBI tracked him and the food company bosses to Las Vegas where they would reportedly live the high life and work out their bribe deals. The FBI says that they searched one of Monem's homes and found a large amount of cash and drugs, including marijuana and hashish. They also discovered that the suspect paid cash for his BMW, a boat, two homes along the Oregon coast, and a number of townhouses in Salem.
Monem's wife and the food company owners were all arrested, but only Monem ran. In October 2007, a grand jury indicted Farhad 'Fred' Monem on 20 counts relating to the bribery and racketeering schemes. The FBI says that once he is caught, he could face more than 20 years in jail.
Authorities claim that Monem had more than a dozen guns and rifles in his home. He is a gambler and heavy user of marijuana, hashish, and alcohol. He speaks both Farsi and English. Authorities say that Monem is known to have traveled to Buffalo, New York on July 1, 2007 and also has ties to California, Canada, and Iran. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
 |
|
| |
|
|