Executive Summary
Laws and Precedent
A Lakeland man, Abraham Othman Yacoub, 27, has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for bank fraud. U.S. District Judge Virginia Hernandez Covington ordered that this sentence run consecutively to a prior federal prison term Yacoub is currently serving for bringing a firearm into Tampa International Airport. As part of the judgment, the court also mandated a forfeiture of $181,540.51, representing the total loss incurred by the victim financial institutions. Yacoub pleaded guilty to the charges on May 5, 2025.
Details of the Fraud Scheme
From January 2021 to February 2023, Yacoub orchestrated a scheme to defraud multiple financial institutions in the Tampa area. He conducted dozens of fraudulent deposits and withdrawals through business banking accounts associated with his companies, Visionary Auto Body LLC and Visionary Auto Care LLC.
One method involved Yacoub depositing the same checks multiple times into different business accounts he controlled. He knew these checks had already been deposited and paid. This action caused victim banks to prematurely credit his accounts, allowing him to withdraw or transfer funds before the financial institutions recognized the checks had been previously processed.
Yacoub also issued fraudulent business checks from closed accounts belonging to Visionary Auto Body and Visionary Auto Care. Despite knowing these accounts were closed and lacked funds, he would deposit these checks. He then withdrew or attempted to withdraw the credited funds before the banks identified that the originating accounts were defunct.
Investigation and Prosecution
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted the investigation into Yacoub’s fraudulent activities. Assistant United States Attorney Karyna Valdes prosecuted the case, leading to Yacoub’s guilty plea and subsequent sentencing.
