https://regionnewssource.org/2026/05/13/indictment-charges-crown-point-businessman-with-4-million-dollar-fraud-schemes/

A Crown Point businessman has been federally indicted on charges alleging he orchestrated two fraud schemes that netted more than $4 million, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois.

Federal prosecutors announced that 41-year-old Raed Naser was charged with 11 counts of wire fraud and four counts of money laundering in an indictment unsealed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Chicago.

According to the indictment, Naser owned a freight transport company based in Orland Park, Illinois. Prosecutors allege he carried out two separate fraud schemes. One scheme allegedly involved submitting false invoices for freight shipments that never occurred. The second scheme allegedly involved bakery franchises that prosecutors say were sold to an unsuspecting buyer after their value was fraudulently inflated.

Authorities allege Naser laundered proceeds from the schemes by purchasing luxury vehicles, including a Lamborghini Huracan, BMW M8 Gran Coupe, and Cadillac Escalade.

Naser pleaded not guilty during his arraignment Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge M. David Weisman in federal court in Chicago. A status hearing is scheduled for June 10, 2026, before U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman.

The indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney Andrew S. Boutros, FBI Chicago Special Agent-in-Charge Douglas S. DePodesta, and Acting Inspector-in-Charge Nicholas Bucciarelli of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Chicago Division.

Federal prosecutors emphasized that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Naser is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.