California Man Indicted in Multi-Million Dollar Fraud Scheme Targeting New Jersey Company

Irvine resident accused of submitting fake invoices under factoring agreement to secure illegitimate payments from NJ-based business

NEWARK, N.J. — A federal grand jury has indicted a California man for allegedly defrauding a New Jersey-based company out of millions of dollars through a falsified invoice scheme, U.S. Attorney Alina Habba announced.

Joseph Rodriguez, 70, of Irvine, California, was charged with three counts of wire fraud and arrested earlier this week. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge John D. Early in Santa Ana federal court following the indictment.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Rodriguez operated Old American Incorporated and entered into a factoring agreement with a New Jersey company identified in the indictment as “Victim-1” in January 2015. Under the agreement, Old American was allowed to receive upfront loans from Victim-1 in exchange for the right to collect future accounts receivable. The terms required Rodriguez’s company to repay advances within 90 days and maintain control of its customer relationships and collections.

Between February and July 2023, Rodriguez is alleged to have submitted fictitious invoices to Victim-1 for non-existent accounts receivable. Prosecutors state that the customers listed in the invoices owed no money to Old American and that no outstanding payments were due. Based on these documents, the New Jersey company issued substantial advance payments, which Rodriguez did not repay.

If convicted, Rodriguez faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each count of wire fraud, or twice the financial loss or gain resulting from the offense, whichever is greater.

The investigation was conducted by special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Newark Division, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Roddy.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Farhana C. Melo and Benjamin D. Bleiberg of the Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.

The charges in the indictment are allegations. Rodriguez is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.