Man Arrested in Check Fraud

By LoudounExtra.com staff

Monday, August 13, 2007

An investigation of a South Riding man who allegedly defrauded at least two people turned up $2,423,070 in counterfeit checks, the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office said.

Sharveen Sharifaie-Arabi, 21, was arrested during a sting operation Thursday at the Prime Mart in Chantilly. He has been charged with one count of obtaining money by false pretenses.

The investigation began earlier this month when personnel from Vanderbilt University contacted the sheriff's office after a student said she had been scammed out of money when she tried to rent a room to Sharifaie-Arabi.

A second complaint against Sharifaie-Arabi was filed Wednesday by a Rhode Island man. The man was selling a display case on Craigslist and received a suspicious check for the item, the sheriff's office said.

Authorities said Sharifaie-Arabi sent the man a check for more than the asking price of the display case. A letter included with the check asked the man to send the additional money to a Western Union location near South Riding. The additional money was allegedly to pay another person for the cost of moving the display case, authorities said.

In the sting operation, Sharifaie-Arabi was told the money had been sent to the Prime Mart convenience store and was taken into custody when he went to pick up the check.

Loudoun County sheriff's deputies searched Sharifaie-Arabi’s home and uncovered $2,423,070 in counterfeit checks.

There are no reported scam victims in Loudoun County. The case remains under investigation and further charges are possible.

Sharifaie-Arabi was released on a $3,000 secured bond.

Tagged: crime

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