A Morgan Hill man is accused of running a scheme to get people to invest in real estate opportunities that did not exist, stealing about $2.3 million from four victims, authorities said Wednesday.
According to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office, 45-year-old Sayed Tamim Faquiryan befriended members of the Middle Eastern community before offering them opportunities to invest in what turned out to be phony businesses, such as a gas station in Berkeley and a car wash in Gilroy.
The thefts happened between January 2016 and December 2022, prosecutors allege.
“Our community should be safe from financial predators and financial predators should know they are not safe in our community,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement.
Faquiryan is charged with grand theft, securities fraud, identity theft, passing fraudulent checks and filing a false document, plus white-collar crime enhancements.
He is out on $250,000 bail, and is next due in court for a plea hearing on April 11. If convicted, Faquirtan could face jail time and have to pay restitution to the four victims.
His alleged co-conspirator, 41-year-old Navid Azizian, of Novato, has been charged with six counts of grand theft for alleged involvement with one of the victims.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact DA Investigator Justin DeOliveira at 408-792-2420 or jdeoliveira@dao.sccgov.org.
