A Dubai resident has been indicted on fraud, money laundering and identity theft offense for allegedly defrauding small and medium-sized business while posing as a Connecticut commercial lender.
A federal grand jury in Bridgeport returned a nine-count indictment charging Saul Shalev, 36, a dual U.S.-Israeli national, in connection with an alleged scheme that defrauded small and medium-sized businesses and commercial lenders, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut.
The indictment was returned on Aug. 20, 2025. It charges Shalev with three counts of wire fraud, which carries a maximum term of 20 years in prison on each count; four counts of money laundering, which carries a maximum term of 20 years on each count; and two counts of aggravated identity theft, which carries a mandatory consecutive term of two years on each count, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Shalev was arrested in Barcelona, Spain, on Sept. 15, 2025, at the request of the United States. He appeared Tuesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge S. Dave Vatti in Bridgeport and was ordered detained.
Court records show that Shalev holds U.S. and Israeli passports, lived in Brooklyn, New York, until February 2019, and most recently resided in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Between December 2019 and November 2022, Shalev allegedly defrauded more than 20 small and medium-sized businesses, according to the indictment. He allegedly obtained information about commercial loans they had received and offered them the opportunity “to refinance the loans or to obtain additional financing, either from the original lender or from a new lender,” the indictment says.
Shalev allegedly acted as a broker between the businesses and potential lenders while using “stolen identities and making fraudulent representations,” according to the indictment.
“After obtaining new or additional financing for an SMB from a commercial lender, Shalev provided fraudulent payoff instructions to the SMB with respect to a prior loan, causing the SMB to send all or part of the loan proceeds to an account he controlled. Shalev also fraudulently received a commission from the lender,” the indictment says.
The indictment also alleges that:
“In December 2020, Shalev used a stolen identity and posed as a broker between an auto dealership in Ohio and a commercial lender in Connecticut. Shalev caused the lender to make a loan of $343,000 to the auto dealer, caused the auto dealer to make a payoff payment of $190,668.06 to a commercial lender in Colorado that was actually directed to an account controlled by Shalev, and received a commission from the Connecticut lender of $42,000.”
“In August 2021, Shalev used a stolen identity and posed as a broker between a health care provider in Indiana and the Connecticut lender. Shalev caused the lender to make a loan of $145,500 to the healthcare provider, caused the healthcare provider to make payoff payments totaling $156,838.85 to the commercial lender in Colorado that were actually directed to an account controlled by Shalev, and received a commission from the Connecticut lender of $18,000.”
“In November 2022, Shalev posed as a broker between a provider of home improvement services in Michigan and a commercial lender in Pennsylvania. Shalev caused the lender to make a loan of $196,000 to the Michigan business, advised the business that the loan proceeds were sent in error, and instructed the business to “return” the proceeds to an account he controlled.”
The indictment also alleges that Shalev converted stolen funds into cryptocurrency.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Connecticut Cyber Task Force, the Stamford Police Department, and the Greenwich Police Department. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and Spanish authorities provided significant assistance in securing Shalev’s arrest and January 23 extradition.
