Loves Park investment advisor charged with fraudulently obtaining more than $950,000 from customers 

A Loves Park man was charged with fraudulently obtaining more than $950,000 from three of his customers, according to a criminal charge filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Rockford. The information charges, Naseem Salamah, 40, of Loves Park, with one count of wire fraud. 

According to the criminal information filed in federal court in Rockford, Salamah was an investment advisor in Loves Park who between August 2017 and May 2021, fraudulently obtained more than $950,000 from the accounts of three of his customers.

Specifically, Salamah told the customers that he needed to move the money to diversify their assets, when in fact, Salamah deposited the money into a bank account that he controlled. Salamah used the money for his own benefit without the customers’ knowledge or consent. 

Wire fraud carries a maximum potential penalty of up to 20 years in prison, a term of supervised release of up to 3 years following imprisonment, and a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the gross gain or gross loss resulting from the offense, whichever is greater.

If convicted, the court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal sentencing statutes and the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines. Salamah will be arraigned on a date yet to be determined in U.S. District Court in Rockford. 

The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. 

The indictment was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Emmerson Buie, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which filed a civil enforcement action against Salamah, provided valuable assistance. 

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott R. Paccagnini.