Local Insurance Agent Convicted of Fraud

Memphis, TN – Following a four-day jury trial in federal court, a Memphis man has been convicted on two counts of wire fraud. D. Michael Dunavant, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee announced the verdict today.

According to information presented in court, Manzur Mazumder, 49, an insurance agent, started a hedge fund business which defrauded several individuals of their retirement savings. Between 2014 and 2017, Mazumder obtained a total of $360,000 from "M.T.," a resident of Hawaii, "J.T.," a resident of Missouri, and "A.J.," a resident of Memphis.

U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said, "Fraudulent schemes that steal hard-earned retirement savings from innocent victims represent the very worst betrayals of trust in our financial markets. We are pleased that justice has been achieved on behalf of the victims, and we commend the FBI for their outstanding investigation in this disturbing case.

Mazumder used a large portion of the investors’ funds to pay for personal expenses, including living and travel expenses, a down payment on a condominium, loan payments, debit card charges and overdrafts in several bank accounts. Mazumder day-traded the rest of the investors’ funds in options contracts, resulting in large losses.

"Today’s conviction shows that those who prey on innocent investors and violate the law in order to line their own pockets will be identified, investigated, prosecuted and held accountable for their crimes," said Michael T. Gavin, Special Agent in Charge of the Memphis Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. "This type of crime degrades the trust investors place in their investment advisors and the financial markets, and the FBI remains steadfast in our commitment to pursue these type of cases to protect the public from such fraud."

This case was investigated by the FBI.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dean DeCandia and David Pritchard are prosecuting this case on the government’s behalf.