A Dubai resident faces federal charges for allegedly defrauding a Connecticut-based commercial lender out of hundreds of thousands of dollars as part of a nationwide scheme targeting small business loans.
Saul Shalev, 36, a dual U.S.-Israeli national, appeared Monday before U.S. Magistrate Judge S. Dave Vatti in Bridgeport and was ordered detained following his extradition from Spain.
A federal grand jury indicted Shalev in August on nine counts including wire fraud, money laundering and aggravated identity theft. He was arrested in Barcelona on Sept. 15 at the request of U.S. authorities.
According to the indictment, Shalev defrauded more than 25 small and medium-sized businesses across the country between December 2019 and February 2025. The scheme involved Shalev posing as a loan broker using stolen identities, then diverting loan proceeds into accounts he controlled.
The unidentified Connecticut lender was victimized in at least two transactions that cost the company more than $400,000, according to federal authorities.
In December 2020, Shalev allegedly posed as a broker between an Ohio auto dealership and the Connecticut lender. He caused the lender to make a $343,000 loan, then provided fraudulent payoff instructions that diverted $190,668 to his own account. He also received a $42,000 commission from the lender.
In August 2021, Shalev allegedly brokered a $145,500 loan from the Connecticut lender to an Indiana healthcare provider. He diverted payoff payments totaling $156,838 to his account and collected an $18,000 commission from the lender.
Prosecutors said Shalev converted stolen funds through multiple cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Ethereum and Tether to conceal their origin before depositing them into accounts in his own name.
Investigators connected Shalev to the crimes through IP address analysis showing the same addresses accessing both fraudulent domain registrations and his personal financial accounts on the same dates.
Email evidence in Shalev’s Gmail accounts contained spreadsheets listing victim businesses with loan information, DocuSign confirmations for fraudulent documents, and phone service invoices for numbers used to contact victims, federal authorities said.
Fugitive
Shalev fled overseas in February 2019 while criminal charges were pending against him in New Jersey stemming from a motor vehicle crash. He remained a fugitive for nearly seven years before his arrest in Spain, according to court documents.
A warrant for failure to appear remains pending in New Jersey, along with two warrants issued in September and October 2018 for probation violations related to drunken-driving charges.
Judge Vatti ordered Shalev detained, despite a proposed $5 million bond co-signed by his parents and secured by properties with $3.5 million in equity. The judge found Shalev’s parents “unsuitable as custodians” because they had contact with him while he was on the run and appeared to have facilitated his lengthy flight by providing financial support.
The indictment charges Shalev with three counts of wire fraud, four counts of money laundering and two counts of aggravated identity theft. Wire fraud and money laundering each carry maximum 20-year prison terms, while aggravated identity theft carries a mandatory consecutive two-year sentence on each count.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Connecticut Cyber Task Force, Stamford Police Department and Greenwich Police Department. Spanish authorities assisted with Shalev’s arrest and Jan. 23 extradition.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward Chang is prosecuting the case.
