Wayne Man Charged with Using Fake FDA Documents to Defraud Vaping Company Investors

Mohammad Abuhadba allegedly fabricated federal authorization letters and counterfeit FDA seals to solicit investments under false pretenses.

A Wayne, New Jersey man has been charged with multiple federal crimes for allegedly using counterfeit FDA documents to deceive investors into financing a vaping business, Acting U.S. Attorney and Special Attorney Alina Habba announced.

Mohammad Abuhadba, 42, was indicted on two counts of wire fraud and three counts of using the counterfeit seal of a federal agency. He appeared for arraignment on November 19, 2025, before U.S. Magistrate Judge José R. Almonte in Newark federal court and was released on a $100,000 unsecured bond.

False FDA Authorization

According to court documents and statements made in court, Abuhadba allegedly misled two investors by claiming he had received authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market and sell e-cigarette and vaping products in the United States. This type of authorization is legally required for the commercial distribution of tobacco products.

In reality, Abuhadba never applied for nor received FDA authorization. Instead, he is accused of creating falsified documents bearing counterfeit FDA seals and providing them to investors to substantiate his claims. He also allegedly altered a legitimate FDA letter to further conceal the lack of approval.

Prosecutors say that after securing the initial investment, Abuhadba continued to misrepresent the status of the company’s FDA application to induce additional funding from the victims.

Penalties & Investigation

Each wire fraud charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Each use of a counterfeit seal charge carries a maximum sentence of 5 years and similar financial penalties.

The investigation was led by special agents from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Newark Division, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Roddy.

The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica R. Ecker and Garrett J. Schuman of the Health Care Fraud and Opioids Enforcement Unit in Newark.

As of now, Abuhadba remains presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.