Tuesday, February 03, 2009

IRS Raids Vegas Casino As Part of Investigation Into Former Fry's Executive

From The Mercury News:

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has expanded its investigation into a former Fry's executive, with agents seizing financial records and interviewing employees from at least one Las Vegas casino last week.

Federal agents on Thursday visited the Venetian, a casino and hotel along the Vegas Strip which Ausaf "Omar" Siddiqui, 43, had frequented, IRS spokeswoman Arlette Lee confirmed Monday.

She declined further comment, saying the search warrants have been sealed.

Siddiqui was charged in mid-December on allegations that he was part of a $65 million kickback scheme, where he supposedly charged vendors exorbitant fees to place their products on Fry's shelves, and pocketed the money to pay off huge gambling debts. He was formally charged in January on nine counts of wire fraud and money laundering. The Palo Alto resident is on house arrest and is scheduled to appear in San Jose's federal court Wednesday morning.

John Beckmann, 47, of Las Vegas and Siddiqui's "casino host" at the Palms Casino, told the Mercury News on Monday in an exclusive interview that he was questioned for "a couple of hours" by two IRS agents Wednesday afternoon. Beckmann essentially catered to Siddiqui's every need when he gambled at the Palms for three years.