Below is a non-exhaustive list of individuals who defrauded the American public, U.S. financial institutions, and taxpayer-funded systems out of billions of dollars through bank fraud, securities fraud, Medicare fraud, insurance fraud, and foreign-influence schemes.
They collapsed banks, looted public insurance pools, exploited federal healthcare programs, corrupted political processes, and wiped out retirement savings.
And they all share one thing in common.... Donald Trump pardoned or commuted them.
They collapsed banks, looted public insurance pools, exploited federal healthcare programs, corrupted political processes, and wiped out retirement savings.
And they all share one thing in common.... Donald Trump pardoned or commuted them.
1. Sholom Rubashkin (Bank fraud, wire & mail fraud — sentence commuted Dec. 2017)
Born in Brooklyn, NY, to Haredi Jewish immigrant parents from Russia (his father Aaron was a kosher butcher who fled the Soviet Union). Rubashkin is part of a prominent Lubavitcher Hasidic family and served as CEO of Agriprocessors, once the largest kosher meatpacking plant in the U.S., based in Postville, Iowa.
In 2009, a federal jury convicted Rubashkin on 86 felony counts, including:
• bank fraud
• wire fraud
• mail fraud
• false statements to lenders
• money laundering
Prosecutors demonstrated that Rubashkin systematically inflated accounts receivable and falsified financial records to secure fraudulent loans, causing $26–27 million in losses to multiple financial institutions. He was sentenced to 27 years in federal prison, ordered to pay nearly $27 million in restitution, and placed under additional probation.
Despite the scale and duration of the fraud, Rubashkin became the focus of an intensive clemency campaign spearheaded by politically connected figures within the Chabad-Lubavitch network. The Aleph Institute, which advocates for Jewish prisoners, mobilized heavily on his behalf.
One of his most influential advocates was Alan Dershowitz who personally appealed to Trump, arguing Rubashkin’s sentence was “disproportionate.”
In December 2017, after Rubashkin had served just eight years of his 27-year sentence, Donald Trump commuted the sentence in full, his first major act of presidential clemency.
Crucially, this decision came after Agriprocessors had already become nationally notorious. In 2008, the facility was raided in the largest single ICE workplace operation in U.S. history, uncovering widespread wage theft, unsafe labor conditions, immigration violations, and the exploitation of undocumented and underage workers. While legally distinct from the bank-fraud case, these abuses formed the broader context
Born in Brooklyn, NY, to Haredi Jewish immigrant parents from Russia (his father Aaron was a kosher butcher who fled the Soviet Union). Rubashkin is part of a prominent Lubavitcher Hasidic family and served as CEO of Agriprocessors, once the largest kosher meatpacking plant in the U.S., based in Postville, Iowa.
In 2009, a federal jury convicted Rubashkin on 86 felony counts, including:
• bank fraud
• wire fraud
• mail fraud
• false statements to lenders
• money laundering
Prosecutors demonstrated that Rubashkin systematically inflated accounts receivable and falsified financial records to secure fraudulent loans, causing $26–27 million in losses to multiple financial institutions. He was sentenced to 27 years in federal prison, ordered to pay nearly $27 million in restitution, and placed under additional probation.
Despite the scale and duration of the fraud, Rubashkin became the focus of an intensive clemency campaign spearheaded by politically connected figures within the Chabad-Lubavitch network. The Aleph Institute, which advocates for Jewish prisoners, mobilized heavily on his behalf.
One of his most influential advocates was Alan Dershowitz who personally appealed to Trump, arguing Rubashkin’s sentence was “disproportionate.”
In December 2017, after Rubashkin had served just eight years of his 27-year sentence, Donald Trump commuted the sentence in full, his first major act of presidential clemency.
Crucially, this decision came after Agriprocessors had already become nationally notorious. In 2008, the facility was raided in the largest single ICE workplace operation in U.S. history, uncovering widespread wage theft, unsafe labor conditions, immigration violations, and the exploitation of undocumented and underage workers. While legally distinct from the bank-fraud case, these abuses formed the broader context
2. Michael Milken — “The Junk Bond King”
(Securities fraud, mail fraud, tax violations • Full Presidential Pardon, Feb 2020)
Michael Milken, born in Los Angeles to a middle-class Jewish family, rose to prominence in the 1970s–80s as the architect of the modern high-yield (“junk”) bond market while working at Drexel Burnham Lambert. Operating largely from Drexel’s Beverly Hills office, Milken transformed junk bonds into a powerful financial instrument, fueling hostile takeovers, leveraged buyouts, and corporate restructurings across Wall Street.
At his peak, Milken was reportedly earning over $500 million per year, becoming one of the highest-paid individuals in financial history.
In 1990, following a sweeping federal investigation led by Rudy Giuliani’s U.S. Attorney’s Office, Milken entered a plea deal and was convicted on six felony counts, including:
• securities fraud
• mail fraud
• tax violations
• conspiracy related to insider trading and stock manipulation
The investigation exposed a sprawling insider-trading network involving figures such as Ivan Boesky, with practices including stock parking, bid rigging, and market manipulation. Milken was initially facing up to 98 criminal counts and decades in prison.
He was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison (later reduced), served 22 months in minimum-security custody, paid $600 million in criminal fines, and an additional $200 million civil settlement with the SEC. He was permanently barred from the securities industry, one of the most severe financial penalties ever imposed on a Wall Street executive. Drexel Burnham Lambert collapsed shortly thereafter.
Despite the scale of the fraud, Milken launched a long-term rehabilitation campaign centered on philanthropy, healthcare funding, and elite political access. He became a major donor to Jewish and pro-Israel causes, including Chabad-affiliated institutions, medical research initiatives, and education programs. Over time, Milken was re-embraced by powerful sectors of finance, academia, and politics.
A broad coalition of elites pushed for his pardon, arguing that he had “paid his debt” and that his innovations had benefited the U.S. economy. Supporters included Wall Street executives, former prosecutors, politicians from both parties, and influential legal advocates including Alan Dershowitz, who publicly supported Milken’s clemency while also defending other controversial financial and criminal figures.
In February 2020, Donald Trump issued a full presidential pardon, completely wiping Milken’s criminal record. Trump cited Milken’s charitable work and claimed his original prosecution reflected excesses of the 1980s financial crackdown.
Milken’s pardon became one of the most significant white-collar financial exonerations of the modern era not because new evidence emerged, but because sustained elite pressure reframed systemic fraud as “innovation” and criminal accountability as “overreach.”
(Securities fraud, mail fraud, tax violations • Full Presidential Pardon, Feb 2020)
Michael Milken, born in Los Angeles to a middle-class Jewish family, rose to prominence in the 1970s–80s as the architect of the modern high-yield (“junk”) bond market while working at Drexel Burnham Lambert. Operating largely from Drexel’s Beverly Hills office, Milken transformed junk bonds into a powerful financial instrument, fueling hostile takeovers, leveraged buyouts, and corporate restructurings across Wall Street.
At his peak, Milken was reportedly earning over $500 million per year, becoming one of the highest-paid individuals in financial history.
In 1990, following a sweeping federal investigation led by Rudy Giuliani’s U.S. Attorney’s Office, Milken entered a plea deal and was convicted on six felony counts, including:
• securities fraud
• mail fraud
• tax violations
• conspiracy related to insider trading and stock manipulation
The investigation exposed a sprawling insider-trading network involving figures such as Ivan Boesky, with practices including stock parking, bid rigging, and market manipulation. Milken was initially facing up to 98 criminal counts and decades in prison.
He was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison (later reduced), served 22 months in minimum-security custody, paid $600 million in criminal fines, and an additional $200 million civil settlement with the SEC. He was permanently barred from the securities industry, one of the most severe financial penalties ever imposed on a Wall Street executive. Drexel Burnham Lambert collapsed shortly thereafter.
Despite the scale of the fraud, Milken launched a long-term rehabilitation campaign centered on philanthropy, healthcare funding, and elite political access. He became a major donor to Jewish and pro-Israel causes, including Chabad-affiliated institutions, medical research initiatives, and education programs. Over time, Milken was re-embraced by powerful sectors of finance, academia, and politics.
A broad coalition of elites pushed for his pardon, arguing that he had “paid his debt” and that his innovations had benefited the U.S. economy. Supporters included Wall Street executives, former prosecutors, politicians from both parties, and influential legal advocates including Alan Dershowitz, who publicly supported Milken’s clemency while also defending other controversial financial and criminal figures.
In February 2020, Donald Trump issued a full presidential pardon, completely wiping Milken’s criminal record. Trump cited Milken’s charitable work and claimed his original prosecution reflected excesses of the 1980s financial crackdown.
Milken’s pardon became one of the most significant white-collar financial exonerations of the modern era not because new evidence emerged, but because sustained elite pressure reframed systemic fraud as “innovation” and criminal accountability as “overreach.”
3. Philip Esformes — Largest Medicare Fraud in U.S. History
(Healthcare fraud, kickbacks, money laundering | Commutation: Dec 2020)
Philip Philip Esformes was born in Chicago in 1968 into a wealthy Orthodox Jewish family deeply embedded in religious philanthropy. His father, Rabbi Morris Esformes, built a sprawling nursing-home empire and was a major donor to Jewish institutions. Philip inherited and expanded the family business, becoming a Miami-based healthcare magnate controlling dozens of nursing homes and assisted-living facilities across Florida.
In 2019, Esformes was convicted by a federal jury on 20 felony counts, including:
• healthcare fraud
• conspiracy
• paying and receiving illegal kickbacks
• money laundering
The Department of Justice described the case as the largest Medicare fraud scheme ever prosecuted, totaling $1.3 billion.
Prosecutors proved Esformes bribed doctors, hospital administrators, and government officials to funnel patients into his facilities. Once admitted, patients were overtreated, warehoused, or kept unnecessarily, while Esformes’ companies systematically looted Medicare and Medicaid through fraudulent billing. The scheme operated for years and relied on corruption at multiple levels of the healthcare system.
Esformes was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison, ordered to forfeit $5.5 million, pay $38.7 million in restitution, and fined $250,000. The sentencing judge called the conduct “brazen,” “extraordinary,” and driven by greed at the expense of vulnerable patients and taxpayers.
Despite the unprecedented scale of the fraud, Esformes became the subject of an aggressive clemency campaign. His family donated at least $65,000 to the Aleph Institute, a Chabad-affiliated organization that advocates for Jewish prisoners and has played a recurring role in high-profile Trump clemency cases.
Alan Dershowitz, who advised Aleph and had previously advocated for other controversial clemencies, personally pressed Trump to commute Esformes’ sentence.
In December 2020, after serving just 4.5 years of his 20-year term, Donald Trump commuted Esformes’ sentence, leaving the conviction intact but freeing him from prison. The White House cited support from “community leaders” and legal advocates, emphasizing charitable contributions rather than the scope of the crimes.
Notably, the commutation did not end Esformes’ legal troubles. Hung counts from his original trial were later retried; appeals failed; and in 2024, Esformes was rearrested for violating the terms of his release.
Esformes’ case stands as one of the clearest examples of how extraordinary financial crimes, when paired with religious networks, elite advocacy, and political access, received exceptional mercy under Trump, even when the fraud directly targeted public healthcare systems and the most vulnerable patients in America.
(Healthcare fraud, kickbacks, money laundering | Commutation: Dec 2020)
Philip Philip Esformes was born in Chicago in 1968 into a wealthy Orthodox Jewish family deeply embedded in religious philanthropy. His father, Rabbi Morris Esformes, built a sprawling nursing-home empire and was a major donor to Jewish institutions. Philip inherited and expanded the family business, becoming a Miami-based healthcare magnate controlling dozens of nursing homes and assisted-living facilities across Florida.
In 2019, Esformes was convicted by a federal jury on 20 felony counts, including:
• healthcare fraud
• conspiracy
• paying and receiving illegal kickbacks
• money laundering
The Department of Justice described the case as the largest Medicare fraud scheme ever prosecuted, totaling $1.3 billion.
Prosecutors proved Esformes bribed doctors, hospital administrators, and government officials to funnel patients into his facilities. Once admitted, patients were overtreated, warehoused, or kept unnecessarily, while Esformes’ companies systematically looted Medicare and Medicaid through fraudulent billing. The scheme operated for years and relied on corruption at multiple levels of the healthcare system.
Esformes was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison, ordered to forfeit $5.5 million, pay $38.7 million in restitution, and fined $250,000. The sentencing judge called the conduct “brazen,” “extraordinary,” and driven by greed at the expense of vulnerable patients and taxpayers.
Despite the unprecedented scale of the fraud, Esformes became the subject of an aggressive clemency campaign. His family donated at least $65,000 to the Aleph Institute, a Chabad-affiliated organization that advocates for Jewish prisoners and has played a recurring role in high-profile Trump clemency cases.
Alan Dershowitz, who advised Aleph and had previously advocated for other controversial clemencies, personally pressed Trump to commute Esformes’ sentence.
In December 2020, after serving just 4.5 years of his 20-year term, Donald Trump commuted Esformes’ sentence, leaving the conviction intact but freeing him from prison. The White House cited support from “community leaders” and legal advocates, emphasizing charitable contributions rather than the scope of the crimes.
Notably, the commutation did not end Esformes’ legal troubles. Hung counts from his original trial were later retried; appeals failed; and in 2024, Esformes was rearrested for violating the terms of his release.
Esformes’ case stands as one of the clearest examples of how extraordinary financial crimes, when paired with religious networks, elite advocacy, and political access, received exceptional mercy under Trump, even when the fraud directly targeted public healthcare systems and the most vulnerable patients in America.
4. Charles Kushner (Tax evasion, illegal campaign contributions, witness tampering — Full pardon, Dec. 2020)
Born May 16, 1954, in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Charles Kushner is the son of Joseph and Rae Kushner, Jewish Holocaust survivors who fled Nazi-occupied Poland (then part of Belarus) and immigrated to the United States in 1949. Raised in a Modern Orthodox Jewish household, Kushner founded Kushner Companies in 1985, building it into a major real estate empire with a family net worth estimated at over $1 billion.
In 2005, Kushner pleaded guilty to 18 federal felony counts, including:
· Tax evasion (filing false returns and disguising personal expenses as business deductions)
· Illegal campaign contributions (straw donations made through employees without their consent)
· Witness tampering
The witness-tampering charge stemmed from one of the most notorious episodes in white-collar crime history. Kushner hired a prostitute for $25,000 to seduce his brother-in-law, who was cooperating with federal investigators, secretly filmed the encounter, and mailed the recording to his own sister in an apparent attempt to intimidate and retaliate against a government witness.
He was sentenced to two years in federal prison, served 14 months, paid a $40,000 fine, and was disbarred in three states.
Although there is no confirmed dual Israeli citizenship, the Kushner family has donated tens of millions of dollars to Israeli institutions, including a $20 million gift that named a campus at Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem. Domestically, the Charles and Seryl Kushner Family Foundation donated more than $342,000 to Chabad-affiliated institutions.
In December 2020, Donald Trump granted Charles Kushner a full presidential pardon, citing his post-release philanthropy, support for criminal justice reform (including the First Step Act), and charitable contributions to hospitals and Jewish education.
The pardon also carried an undeniable familial dimension: Charles Kushner is the father of Jared Kushner, Trump’s senior adviser and son-in-law.
Born May 16, 1954, in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Charles Kushner is the son of Joseph and Rae Kushner, Jewish Holocaust survivors who fled Nazi-occupied Poland (then part of Belarus) and immigrated to the United States in 1949. Raised in a Modern Orthodox Jewish household, Kushner founded Kushner Companies in 1985, building it into a major real estate empire with a family net worth estimated at over $1 billion.
In 2005, Kushner pleaded guilty to 18 federal felony counts, including:
· Tax evasion (filing false returns and disguising personal expenses as business deductions)
· Illegal campaign contributions (straw donations made through employees without their consent)
· Witness tampering
The witness-tampering charge stemmed from one of the most notorious episodes in white-collar crime history. Kushner hired a prostitute for $25,000 to seduce his brother-in-law, who was cooperating with federal investigators, secretly filmed the encounter, and mailed the recording to his own sister in an apparent attempt to intimidate and retaliate against a government witness.
He was sentenced to two years in federal prison, served 14 months, paid a $40,000 fine, and was disbarred in three states.
Although there is no confirmed dual Israeli citizenship, the Kushner family has donated tens of millions of dollars to Israeli institutions, including a $20 million gift that named a campus at Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem. Domestically, the Charles and Seryl Kushner Family Foundation donated more than $342,000 to Chabad-affiliated institutions.
In December 2020, Donald Trump granted Charles Kushner a full presidential pardon, citing his post-release philanthropy, support for criminal justice reform (including the First Step Act), and charitable contributions to hospitals and Jewish education.
The pardon also carried an undeniable familial dimension: Charles Kushner is the father of Jared Kushner, Trump’s senior adviser and son-in-law.
5. Michael Ashley (Bank Fraud — Sentence Commuted, January 2021)
Michael Ashley, a Long Island–based mortgage executive, served as vice president and chief business strategist of Lend America, a Melville, New York mortgage lender that at its peak originated more than $1 billion annually before collapsing during the subprime mortgage crisis.
In 2011, Ashley pleaded guilty to bank fraud for his role in diverting and misusing lender funds and facilitating fraudulent mortgage practices at Lend America. Federal prosecutors established that his conduct contributed to more than $49–50 million in losses, including at least $14 million in fraudulent FHA-insured mortgages, and left tens of millions in loans unfunded.
Despite pleading guilty years earlier, Ashley was not sentenced until 2019, when a federal judge imposed a three-year prison sentence, ordered $49 million in restitution, and mandated forfeiture of $800,000. He had not yet reported to prison when his case became the subject of a late-stage clemency campaign.
Ashley’s commutation was actively supported by the Aleph Institute, as well as by multiple Chabad rabbis, including Rabbi Zvi Boyarski and Rabbi Hirschy Zarchi. Once again, Alan Dershowitz emerged as a key figure backing the petition, personally endorsing Ashley’s request for clemency.
On January 20, 2021, the president commuted Ashley’s sentence in full, sparing him from serving any prison time. The White House cited Ashley’s role as a caregiver for his ailing mother and his community support as justification, despite the scale of financial harm involved and the relatively short time elapsed since sentencing.
Michael Ashley, a Long Island–based mortgage executive, served as vice president and chief business strategist of Lend America, a Melville, New York mortgage lender that at its peak originated more than $1 billion annually before collapsing during the subprime mortgage crisis.
In 2011, Ashley pleaded guilty to bank fraud for his role in diverting and misusing lender funds and facilitating fraudulent mortgage practices at Lend America. Federal prosecutors established that his conduct contributed to more than $49–50 million in losses, including at least $14 million in fraudulent FHA-insured mortgages, and left tens of millions in loans unfunded.
Despite pleading guilty years earlier, Ashley was not sentenced until 2019, when a federal judge imposed a three-year prison sentence, ordered $49 million in restitution, and mandated forfeiture of $800,000. He had not yet reported to prison when his case became the subject of a late-stage clemency campaign.
Ashley’s commutation was actively supported by the Aleph Institute, as well as by multiple Chabad rabbis, including Rabbi Zvi Boyarski and Rabbi Hirschy Zarchi. Once again, Alan Dershowitz emerged as a key figure backing the petition, personally endorsing Ashley’s request for clemency.
On January 20, 2021, the president commuted Ashley’s sentence in full, sparing him from serving any prison time. The White House cited Ashley’s role as a caregiver for his ailing mother and his community support as justification, despite the scale of financial harm involved and the relatively short time elapsed since sentencing.
6. Alex Adjmi (Money Laundering for Cali Cartel | Full Pardon, Jan 2021)
Alex Adjmi is a prominent New York real estate investor and a leading figure within the tightly knit Syrian Jewish business community, primarily based in Brooklyn and Deal, New Jersey. He is a co-founder and longtime president of A&H Acquisitions, a firm that manages more than 100 commercial properties across the United States, often in partnership with other major Syrian Jewish developers.
In 1996, Adjmi pleaded guilty in federal court to five felony counts, including money laundering, after being caught in a U.S. government sting operation. Prosecutors established that Adjmi laundered approximately $22.5 million on behalf of Colombia’s Cali cocaine cartel, one of the most powerful narcotics organizations in the world at the time. The scheme involved routing cartel money through an undercover brokerage set up by federal agents, with full knowledge of the illicit source of the funds.
Adjmi was sentenced to federal prison and ultimately served roughly 44 months (nearly four years) behind bars. The case was considered one of the more serious cartel-linked money laundering prosecutions of the 1990s, given both the scale of the funds involved and the direct connection to an active transnational drug trafficking organization.
On January 20, 2021, Donald Trump granted Adjmi a full presidential pardon on his final day in office. The pardon was supported by influential figures within Trump’s donor and social circle.
The White House cited Adjmi’s post-prison rehabilitation, business success, and charitable involvement as justification for the pardon, formally erasing a conviction that involved laundering tens of millions of dollars for an international cocaine cartel.
Alex Adjmi is a prominent New York real estate investor and a leading figure within the tightly knit Syrian Jewish business community, primarily based in Brooklyn and Deal, New Jersey. He is a co-founder and longtime president of A&H Acquisitions, a firm that manages more than 100 commercial properties across the United States, often in partnership with other major Syrian Jewish developers.
In 1996, Adjmi pleaded guilty in federal court to five felony counts, including money laundering, after being caught in a U.S. government sting operation. Prosecutors established that Adjmi laundered approximately $22.5 million on behalf of Colombia’s Cali cocaine cartel, one of the most powerful narcotics organizations in the world at the time. The scheme involved routing cartel money through an undercover brokerage set up by federal agents, with full knowledge of the illicit source of the funds.
Adjmi was sentenced to federal prison and ultimately served roughly 44 months (nearly four years) behind bars. The case was considered one of the more serious cartel-linked money laundering prosecutions of the 1990s, given both the scale of the funds involved and the direct connection to an active transnational drug trafficking organization.
On January 20, 2021, Donald Trump granted Adjmi a full presidential pardon on his final day in office. The pardon was supported by influential figures within Trump’s donor and social circle.
The White House cited Adjmi’s post-prison rehabilitation, business success, and charitable involvement as justification for the pardon, formally erasing a conviction that involved laundering tens of millions of dollars for an international cocaine cartel.
7. Hillel “Helly” Nahmad (Illegal Gambling Operation, Full Pardon – Jan 20, 2021)
Born in New York City in the late 1970s, Hillel “Helly” Nahmad is the son of billionaire art dealer David Nahmad and a member of the powerful Nahmad family, a Sephardic Jewish dynasty originally from Aleppo, Syria. The family fled to Beirut before establishing itself across Europe and the United States, amassing one of the largest private art collections in the world, valued in the billions and heavily concentrated in Picasso, Monet, and modernist works.
Nahmad ran the Helly Nahmad Gallery on Madison Avenue inside the Carlyle Hotel and was a fixture of elite Manhattan real estate circles. He famously purchased the entire 51st floor of Trump Tower for over $20 million, making him both a resident and a personal neighbor of Donald Trump.
In 2014, Nahmad pleaded guilty in federal court to operating an illegal gambling business, after prosecutors dismantled a sprawling high-stakes gambling ring operating out of New York with bets running into the hundreds of millions of dollars.
The enterprise reportedly processed over $100 million in wagers, with celebrities including Tobey Maguire and Leonardo DiCaprio named in related court documents (though not charged). Nahmad ultimately pleaded to a reduced count, was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison, served roughly five months, forfeited $6.4 million, paid a fine, and surrendered a valuable Raoul Dufy painting as part of the penalty.
Nahmad received a full presidential pardon from Donald Trump on January 20, 2021, Trump’s final day in office. The White House cited Nahmad’s post-conviction conduct and community support.
Born in New York City in the late 1970s, Hillel “Helly” Nahmad is the son of billionaire art dealer David Nahmad and a member of the powerful Nahmad family, a Sephardic Jewish dynasty originally from Aleppo, Syria. The family fled to Beirut before establishing itself across Europe and the United States, amassing one of the largest private art collections in the world, valued in the billions and heavily concentrated in Picasso, Monet, and modernist works.
Nahmad ran the Helly Nahmad Gallery on Madison Avenue inside the Carlyle Hotel and was a fixture of elite Manhattan real estate circles. He famously purchased the entire 51st floor of Trump Tower for over $20 million, making him both a resident and a personal neighbor of Donald Trump.
In 2014, Nahmad pleaded guilty in federal court to operating an illegal gambling business, after prosecutors dismantled a sprawling high-stakes gambling ring operating out of New York with bets running into the hundreds of millions of dollars.
The enterprise reportedly processed over $100 million in wagers, with celebrities including Tobey Maguire and Leonardo DiCaprio named in related court documents (though not charged). Nahmad ultimately pleaded to a reduced count, was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison, served roughly five months, forfeited $6.4 million, paid a fine, and surrendered a valuable Raoul Dufy painting as part of the penalty.
Nahmad received a full presidential pardon from Donald Trump on January 20, 2021, Trump’s final day in office. The White House cited Nahmad’s post-conviction conduct and community support.
8. Stephen Odzer (Bank Fraud — Conditional Pardon, Jan 20, 2021)
Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Stephen Odzer attended Yeshiva of Flatbush High School, a Modern Orthodox Jewish day school, and later the Brooklyn College Scholars Program. He began his first distribution business at just 18 years old, operating out of his parents’ basement, and later built a career in shipping and supply logistics, eventually relocating his operations to Nevada.
In 2005, Odzer pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy and bank fraud, admitting to a scheme that defrauded three New York banks of more than $16 million through falsified financial statements and deceptive lending practices. He was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison, served his time, and was ordered to pay substantial restitution, which remained partially outstanding for years.
Odzer is closely connected to Israeli and Jewish nationalist philanthropy. Additional supporters included:
· Matthew Whitaker, former Acting U.S. Attorney General
· Jason Greenblatt, former Trump Middle East envoy
· Michael Steinhardt, billionaire Jewish philanthropist
· Multiple rabbis and figures within Orthodox Jewish networks
On January 20, 2021, Donald Trump granted Odzer a conditional pardon, contingent on the full payment of remaining restitution. The White House cited his philanthropic activities, including COVID-era PPE donations, hospital visits to sick children, distribution of religious materials to inmates, and support for Jewish and Israeli causes.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Stephen Odzer attended Yeshiva of Flatbush High School, a Modern Orthodox Jewish day school, and later the Brooklyn College Scholars Program. He began his first distribution business at just 18 years old, operating out of his parents’ basement, and later built a career in shipping and supply logistics, eventually relocating his operations to Nevada.
In 2005, Odzer pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy and bank fraud, admitting to a scheme that defrauded three New York banks of more than $16 million through falsified financial statements and deceptive lending practices. He was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison, served his time, and was ordered to pay substantial restitution, which remained partially outstanding for years.
Odzer is closely connected to Israeli and Jewish nationalist philanthropy. Additional supporters included:
· Matthew Whitaker, former Acting U.S. Attorney General
· Jason Greenblatt, former Trump Middle East envoy
· Michael Steinhardt, billionaire Jewish philanthropist
· Multiple rabbis and figures within Orthodox Jewish networks
On January 20, 2021, Donald Trump granted Odzer a conditional pardon, contingent on the full payment of remaining restitution. The White House cited his philanthropic activities, including COVID-era PPE donations, hospital visits to sick children, distribution of religious materials to inmates, and support for Jewish and Israeli causes.
9. David Tamman (Full Pardon, Jan 20, 2021)
David Tamman is a Los Angeles–area attorney and former partner at elite law firms Nixon Peabody and Greenberg Traurig, where he specialized in corporate and securities law before his conviction. A graduate of Dartmouth College, Tamman moved in high-level legal and financial circles prior to his criminal case.
In 2012, after a bench trial, Tamman was convicted on 10 felony counts, including:
• conspiracy to obstruct justice
• obstruction of justice
• altering records in a federal investigation
• accessory after the fact to mail fraud and securities fraud
The convictions stemmed from Tamman’s role in actively concealing a $22 million Ponzi scheme run by his client, Los Angeles money manager John Farahi. Farahi targeted members of the Iranian-American Jewish community, using Persian-language radio programs and community trust networks to solicit investments.
Federal prosecutors emphasized that Tamman was not a peripheral figure, but a central enabler whose actions allowed the scheme to continue and expand, increasing losses to victims who believed they were dealing with a legitimate, regulated investment manager.
Tamman was sentenced to 7 years in federal prison, which he served in full, and was released in 2019. He was also fined and permanently discredited within the legal profession.
Notably, Alan Dershowitz represented Tamman on appeal in 2015 (unsuccessfully).
On January 20, 2021, Donald Trump granted Tamman a full pardon, erasing the conviction entirely. The White House cited letters of support from the Aleph Institute, former FBI Director Louis Freeh, and former U.S. Attorney Kendall Coffey, emphasizing that Tamman had completed his sentence and “accepted responsibility.”
David Tamman is a Los Angeles–area attorney and former partner at elite law firms Nixon Peabody and Greenberg Traurig, where he specialized in corporate and securities law before his conviction. A graduate of Dartmouth College, Tamman moved in high-level legal and financial circles prior to his criminal case.
In 2012, after a bench trial, Tamman was convicted on 10 felony counts, including:
• conspiracy to obstruct justice
• obstruction of justice
• altering records in a federal investigation
• accessory after the fact to mail fraud and securities fraud
The convictions stemmed from Tamman’s role in actively concealing a $22 million Ponzi scheme run by his client, Los Angeles money manager John Farahi. Farahi targeted members of the Iranian-American Jewish community, using Persian-language radio programs and community trust networks to solicit investments.
Federal prosecutors emphasized that Tamman was not a peripheral figure, but a central enabler whose actions allowed the scheme to continue and expand, increasing losses to victims who believed they were dealing with a legitimate, regulated investment manager.
Tamman was sentenced to 7 years in federal prison, which he served in full, and was released in 2019. He was also fined and permanently discredited within the legal profession.
Notably, Alan Dershowitz represented Tamman on appeal in 2015 (unsuccessfully).
On January 20, 2021, Donald Trump granted Tamman a full pardon, erasing the conviction entirely. The White House cited letters of support from the Aleph Institute, former FBI Director Louis Freeh, and former U.S. Attorney Kendall Coffey, emphasizing that Tamman had completed his sentence and “accepted responsibility.”
10. Eliyahu “Eli” Weinstein (Massive Ponzi Fraud → Commutation, Jan 20, 2021)
Eliyahu Weinstein, an Orthodox Jewish real-estate developer from Lakewood, New Jersey, a major Haredi enclave, became one of the most prolific serial fraudsters ever granted clemency by Donald Trump.
Operating primarily between 2004 and 2011, Weinstein ran a sprawling real-estate Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors of approximately $200 million, targeting fellow Orthodox Jews through community trust networks, synagogues, and religious affinity channels.
In 2013–2014, Weinstein was convicted in federal court for wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering related to the scheme and sentenced to 22 years in prison.
While on pretrial release, Weinstein committed additional crimes, including a separate fraud involving fake pre-IPO Facebook stock offerings, swindling investors out of millions more under the alias “Mike Konig.” These offenses resulted in a second conviction and additional sentencing, bringing his total losses to roughly $230 million and his combined sentence to 24 years.
Alan Dershowitz advised and supported organizations lobbying for Weinstein’s clemency and made appeals framing Weinstein as excessively punished.
On January 20, 2021, Trump commuted Weinstein’s sentence after he had served just under 8 years, effectively nullifying a punishment originally designed to incapacitate a serial financial predator for decades.
The clemency proved catastrophic. Within a short period after release, Weinstein launched yet ANOTHER fraud scheme, exploiting COVID-era supply shortages and later Ukraine-related investment pitches.
In 2025, he was convicted again!!!! This time for running a $40+ million Ponzi scheme, and sentenced to 37 years in federal prison.
Eliyahu Weinstein, an Orthodox Jewish real-estate developer from Lakewood, New Jersey, a major Haredi enclave, became one of the most prolific serial fraudsters ever granted clemency by Donald Trump.
Operating primarily between 2004 and 2011, Weinstein ran a sprawling real-estate Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors of approximately $200 million, targeting fellow Orthodox Jews through community trust networks, synagogues, and religious affinity channels.
In 2013–2014, Weinstein was convicted in federal court for wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering related to the scheme and sentenced to 22 years in prison.
While on pretrial release, Weinstein committed additional crimes, including a separate fraud involving fake pre-IPO Facebook stock offerings, swindling investors out of millions more under the alias “Mike Konig.” These offenses resulted in a second conviction and additional sentencing, bringing his total losses to roughly $230 million and his combined sentence to 24 years.
Alan Dershowitz advised and supported organizations lobbying for Weinstein’s clemency and made appeals framing Weinstein as excessively punished.
On January 20, 2021, Trump commuted Weinstein’s sentence after he had served just under 8 years, effectively nullifying a punishment originally designed to incapacitate a serial financial predator for decades.
The clemency proved catastrophic. Within a short period after release, Weinstein launched yet ANOTHER fraud scheme, exploiting COVID-era supply shortages and later Ukraine-related investment pitches.
In 2025, he was convicted again!!!! This time for running a $40+ million Ponzi scheme, and sentenced to 37 years in federal prison.
11. Sholam Weiss (MASSIVE Insurance Fraud, Fugitive Flight, Commutation — Jan 19, 2021)
Born April 1, 1954, Sholam Weiss was raised in Borough Park, Brooklyn, in a Hasidic Jewish family and educated in Yiddish-language yeshivas. He later became a businessman operating within Orthodox networks.
Weiss was convicted in 1999 (in absentia) on 78 felony counts, including:
• racketeering (RICO)
• wire fraud
• money laundering
• obstruction of justice
• interstate transportation of stolen funds
The charges stemmed from one of the most sophisticated white-collar frauds in U.S. history: the looting of National Heritage Life Insurance Company (NHL), resulting in approximately $450 million stolen and the company’s collapse. The fraud caused catastrophic losses for thousands of policyholders, many of them elderly retirees whose pensions and life savings were wiped out.
At the time, the case represented the largest insurance failure in U.S. history caused by criminal activity.
While jury deliberations were still underway, Weiss fled the United States, traveling through Israel, Brazil, and other countries, living under false identities and reportedly maintaining a lavish lifestyle. He was ultimately captured in Austria in 2001 after an international manhunt and extradited back to the U.S.
In 2000, Weiss was sentenced to 845 years in federal prison — later reduced on appeal to 835 years, still the longest sentence ever imposed for a non-violent white-collar crime. He was also ordered to pay over $123 million in fines and $125 million in restitution, a substantial portion of which was eventually recovered.
Over the years, Weiss became the centerpiece of a sustained clemency campaign by the Aleph Institute and big-name lawyers such as former Attorneys General Edwin Meese and Michael Mukasey as well as Alan Dershowitz, Ken Starr, and Jay Sekulow.
Dershowitz was a particularly vocal supporter, framing Weiss’s punishment as vindictive rather than just.
On January 19, 2021, Trump commuted Weiss’s sentence, releasing him after more than 18 years in federal prison. The White House cited the unprecedented length of the sentence, Weiss’s age and health, restitution payments made, and broad bipartisan legal support.
The commutation effectively ended one of the longest prison terms ever imposed for financial crime in U.S. history.
Born April 1, 1954, Sholam Weiss was raised in Borough Park, Brooklyn, in a Hasidic Jewish family and educated in Yiddish-language yeshivas. He later became a businessman operating within Orthodox networks.
Weiss was convicted in 1999 (in absentia) on 78 felony counts, including:
• racketeering (RICO)
• wire fraud
• money laundering
• obstruction of justice
• interstate transportation of stolen funds
The charges stemmed from one of the most sophisticated white-collar frauds in U.S. history: the looting of National Heritage Life Insurance Company (NHL), resulting in approximately $450 million stolen and the company’s collapse. The fraud caused catastrophic losses for thousands of policyholders, many of them elderly retirees whose pensions and life savings were wiped out.
At the time, the case represented the largest insurance failure in U.S. history caused by criminal activity.
While jury deliberations were still underway, Weiss fled the United States, traveling through Israel, Brazil, and other countries, living under false identities and reportedly maintaining a lavish lifestyle. He was ultimately captured in Austria in 2001 after an international manhunt and extradited back to the U.S.
In 2000, Weiss was sentenced to 845 years in federal prison — later reduced on appeal to 835 years, still the longest sentence ever imposed for a non-violent white-collar crime. He was also ordered to pay over $123 million in fines and $125 million in restitution, a substantial portion of which was eventually recovered.
Over the years, Weiss became the centerpiece of a sustained clemency campaign by the Aleph Institute and big-name lawyers such as former Attorneys General Edwin Meese and Michael Mukasey as well as Alan Dershowitz, Ken Starr, and Jay Sekulow.
Dershowitz was a particularly vocal supporter, framing Weiss’s punishment as vindictive rather than just.
On January 19, 2021, Trump commuted Weiss’s sentence, releasing him after more than 18 years in federal prison. The White House cited the unprecedented length of the sentence, Weiss’s age and health, restitution payments made, and broad bipartisan legal support.
The commutation effectively ended one of the longest prison terms ever imposed for financial crime in U.S. history.
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