Witness: Man conned me into spending $250,000
A former business partner testified against Taha Mahmoud Wednesday, saying the 28-year-old Des Plaines man conned him into racking up $250,000 in debt on luxury items like a private jet rental, down payments on a Mercedes-Benz and Lamborghini and thousands of dollars worth of poolside Dom Pérignon at a South Beach Florida hotel, and then used bad checks to reimburse him.
Mahmoud, also known as Alit Khan, is charged with one count of theft by deception and six counts of forgery. In July, Mahmoud pleaded guilty to writing $11,000 worth of bad checks to Sam & Harry's steakhouse in Schaumburg.
On Wednesday, Mahmoud's former business partner Gary Siegel took the stand to begin the bench trial before Cook County Circuit Court Associate Judge John Scotillo.
Siegel testified that he accepted a lucrative job from Mahmoud in early 2009 and was convinced of his new boss's wealth because he saw his Lake Forest estate, several impressive financial statements showing he and his family were worth millions, and Facebook photos of him with his Rolls Royces, boat and private jet.
As they began working together, Siegel said Mahmoud convinced him to buy things they would need to do business with high rollers, so he charged items like $10,000 as a down payment on a Lamborghini, thousands of dollars worth of high-end liquor, and $21,591 to rent a private jet to fly to Florida for a business meeting.
Siegel said Mahmoud always made excuses about why he couldn't pay for things himself, but then wrote him large checks that exceeded the total amount spent as reimbursement. The checks all turned out to be bad, Siegel testified.
Mahmoud's attorney, Michael T. Norris, questioned why Siegel would spend this money without hesitation and blindly assume he'd be paid back.
“I was going to be his protégé. I was going to learn real estate development,” Siegel said. “I had no reason to do anything but listen to him. I thought we were at the beginning of something very promising for me.”
In April, after all of Siegel's credit cards had been declined and Mahmoud couldn't produce any money, Siegel said he contacted the police.
The trial is set to resume Nov. 29. Assistant State's Attorney Mike Burke said there are other cases pending against Mahmoud involving financial crimes.