An Indian-American real estate developer in Miami has been charged in federal court with an $85 million fraud scheme that was used to finance a luxury yacht and a lavish lifestyle.Rishi Kapoor, 41, was indicted in Florida on multiple criminal charges, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, money laundering, bank fraud, tax evasion, failure to file a tax return and conspiracy to defraud the United States. Miami prosecutors unveiled the indictment earlier this month.Kapoor was arrested at a Fort Lauderdale hotel on March 6 and appeared before a magistrate. Prosecutors told the court he was a flight risk and the judge denied his request for bail.Federal prosecutors in Florida said Kapoor raised about $85 million from investors through his company, Location Ventures, promising to build luxury apartments in South Florida. Most projects in areas such as Coconut Grove, Miami Beach, Coral Gables and Fort Lauderdale were never built. Instead, Kapoor diverted investors’ funds for his own personal use as CEO. He reportedly used the money to buy a 68-foot luxury yacht and help pay for a home in Coral Gables’ Cocoplum neighborhood, one of the wealthiest areas. Kapoor is also accused of failing to pay millions of dollars in payroll taxes. He reportedly collected taxes from Location Ventures employees’ salaries but kept about $2 million for himself instead of turning the money over to the IRS.Court documents allege that Kapoor misled banks to obtain funds for a yacht and other personal expenses. Officials allege that he told investors he had invested about $13 million of his own money, but in fact he only invested about half that amount.He also “defrauded escrow agents to secure the release of pre-construction apartment deposits and then misappropriated those funds for personal expenses unrelated to the development,” prosecutors said. “As a result, the Coconut Grove and Miami Beach condo projects were never built,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.If convicted, Kapoor now faces decades in federal prison. Bank fraud alone carries a potential prison sentence of up to 30 years. Prosecutors also said they planned to seize luxury assets linked to the alleged scheme, including yachts, Rolex Daytona watches and platinum rings, in an effort to compensate investors.The case follows a separate civil enforcement action by the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2024, in which Kapoor agreed to pay damages but did not admit wrongdoing in connection with another alleged fraud scheme.
