A Tampa auto dealer is heading to federal prison after a loan scam spun out into an attempt to ship a stolen Rolls-Royce overseas.
On Monday, federal prosecutors secured a 54-month sentence for 27-year-old Mohamad Jihad Fakih in a case that involved about $372,000 in fraudulent auto loans and an attempted export of a luxury SUV. Fakih was convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and attempting to export a stolen vehicle after authorities said he exploited his access to a dealership to push through bogus loans for straw buyers, then split the proceeds with co-conspirators. The investigation culminated when U.S. Customs and Border Protection intercepted a Rolls-Royce Cullinan leaving the Port of Savannah.
According to Tampa Bay 28, prosecutors said the scheme touched at least six vehicles and involved inflated loan applications, fabricated shipping documents to hide active liens, and false insurance claims. Loan money was routed to Fakih and then spread among associates, and the court ordered forfeiture of $372,000 as part of the sentence. The outlet reports that prosecutors linked the export attempt to falsified paperwork before Customs flagged and stopped the Cullinan.
Business Ties in Tampa
Prosecutors say Fakih used dealership channels to submit loan applications that overstated buyers’ income and employment, persuading lenders to fund deals for customers who never actually got cars. Public corporate records list Fakih as a registered agent or officer for several entities tied to a Tampa address, which aligns with the government’s portrayal of dealer-level access as a key piece of the fraud. Those records are available through the Florida Division of Corporations.
Seizure at the Port of Savannah
Prosecutors say the plot hit a wall when U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspected a shipping container at the Port of Savannah and found the stolen Rolls-Royce Cullinan before it left the country. The SUV, described in court filings as worth about $460,000, was intercepted during that container check, according to Tampa Bay 28. The Port of Savannah’s Garden City Terminal is one of the East Coast’s largest container facilities and conducts customs inspections that regularly uncover illegal or improper shipments, according to the Georgia Ports Authority.
Legal Implications
The charges in this case, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and attempting to export a stolen vehicle, are federal crimes typically prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, which can seek both prison terms and forfeiture when supported by the evidence. That office has publicly brought and highlighted similar export-and-smuggling cases, reflecting how these investigations often pull in multiple agencies, from port authorities and customs officers to federal lenders and investigators. Sentences and forfeiture orders depend on the facts of each case, but prosecutors and agents generally stress clawing back illicit proceeds and preventing assets from being moved overseas; the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Middle District of Florida, has posted related sentencing announcements in recent months.
Local Enforcement Trend
In recent years, state and federal agencies in Florida have zeroed in on networks that steal or fraudulently obtain high-end vehicles and then try to move them out of state or out of the country, with multi-agency operations recovering dozens of luxury cars. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement and its partners say those efforts depend on coordinated work among local police, state investigators, federal prosecutors and customs officials, who follow vehicles, paperwork and money as they move through the system.
Fakih was ordered to forfeit $372,000 and will serve the federal sentence imposed by the court. The case underscores how quickly a few falsified applications and doctored shipping forms can unravel once investigators start pulling on the paper trail and checking what is inside outbound containers.
