Miami real estate developer Rishi Kapoor indicted in $85M fraud scheme

A federal indictment unsealed Friday charges a Florida real estate developer with orchestrating an $85 million fraud scheme. Not being able to pay millions in taxesand lying to financial institutions to buy a luxury yacht.

Rishi Kapoor, 41, of Miami, is charged with wire fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy to commit crimes against and defraud the United States, failure to pay payroll taxes, tax evasion, failure to file tax returns and bank fraud.

The indictment also includes allegations of seizure, including a Rolex Daytona watch and a 2.5-carat platinum ring.

Kapoor was the chief executive officer of Location Ventures. Miami-based real estate development company It purported to develop projects in Coral Gables, Coconut Grove, Miami Beach and Fort Lauderdale.

Court documents allege Kapoor raised about $85 million from investors, but most of what was promised real estate projects was never built.

Although he was entitled to a salary of $400,000 plus certain fees, Kapoor diverted significantly more money to personal use, including the purchase of a 68-foot yacht and a home in Cocoplum, according to court documents.

Kapoor allegedly misrepresented to investors the amount of his personal financial contribution to Location Ventures, claiming to have invested $13 million with his business partner and family, but actually contributing approximately half that amount.

If convicted, the developer could face decades in prison. (iStock)

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He is also accused of deceiving escrow agents to obtain the release of pre-construction condominium deposits and then misusing those funds for personal expenses unrelated to the developments.

As a result, condominium projects in Coconut Grove and Miami Beach were never built.

U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones of the Southern District of Florida said Kapoor withheld payroll taxes from employees but failed to turn that money over to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), “effectively stealing from his own employees.”

A real estate developer is accused of defrauding investors of millions. (iStock)

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Court documents allege that Kapoor transferred more than $2 million from company accounts for his personal benefit and failed to pay his own personal taxes from 2019 to 2023, despite earning more than $2.8 million in income in 2022 and 2023.

Kapoor is also accused fraud in bank statements inflating account balances, failing to disclose a significant mortgage on his Cocoplum residence, and misrepresenting the filing of tax returns with the IRS – all to obtain more than $9 million in financing.

According to the indictment, one bank gave a $5 million loan to Location Ventures, while another gave a $4.2 million loan to Kapoor to finance the purchase of a yacht.

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If convicted, Kapoor faces up to 20 years in federal prison on each count of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud; up to 10 years for money laundering; Up to five years for each count of conspiracy to commit a crime against the United States, failure to pay payroll taxes, tax evasion, and failure to file tax returns; and up to 30 years for each count of bank fraud.

US Securities and Exchange Commission also filed a civil suit against Kapoor.

“These are serious allegations that will now come to the fore.” handled in federal court“The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt,” Quiñones wrote in a statement.

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