Las Vegas Man Sentenced to 84 Months in Prison for $1.4 Million Cannabis and Restaurant Investment Fraud Scheme

Earlier today, in federal court in Central Islip, Elias Ghanem II, who previously resided in Las Vegas, Nevada, was sentenced by United States District Judge Gary R. Brown to 84 months' imprisonment for engaging in a fraudulent scheme to solicit investments in purported cannabis and restaurant entities and defrauding investors of approximately $1.4 million. The Court also ordered Ghanem to pay approximately $1.4 million in restitution to the victims of his crimes. Ghanem pleaded guilty to wire fraud in February 2025.

The sentence was announced by Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York and Christopher G. Raia, Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI).

"Today, the defendant received just punishment for defrauding more than a dozen investors, including a retired law enforcement officer whose arm was amputated due to gunshot wounds," stated United States Attorney Nocella. "Our Office and our law enforcement partners will continue to pursue justice for victims of financial crime who fall prey to individuals like Ghanem who advance their greedy desires at the expense of others."

"Elias Ghanem shamelessly stole more than one million dollars from investors of his companies to fund personal purchases," stated FBI Assistant Director in Charge Raia. "Ghanem prioritized selfish greed and preyed on the wallets of his victims. The FBI will never tolerate any individual who utilizes lies and deceit to enrich themselves."

According to court filings and the defendant's admissions, between approximately September 2018 through October 2019, Ghanem solicited approximately $1 million from investors in Viva Capital Ventures, LLC (Viva), a purported cannabis distribution and manufacturing company that Ghanem claimed to operate. One of Ghanem's Viva investors was a retired police officer who invested around $280,000 he received after he was shot multiple times during an armored car robbery, which led to his arm being amputated. Although Ghanem told the Viva investors that he would use their monies for business-related expenses such as those related to applications for cannabis distribution licenses in various states, Ghanem never applied for such licenses and instead diverted nearly $1 million to fund a lavish lifestyle, including the purchase of a luxury waterfront home in Babylon, New York, and for personal expenses, including the partial repayment of a personal loan, and payments of restitution obligations that were imposed to resolve prior criminal charges against him in Nevada.

In a second scheme, Ghanem solicited approximately $400,000 from investors in the Friends and Family Hospitality Group (FFHG), a purported restaurant entity that Ghanem claimed he operated. Although Ghanem told the investors that he would use their funds to finance the establishment of a New York City restaurant, he instead used approximately $200,000 to purchase jewelry and lease a Florida condominium. In response to demands for repayment, Ghanem issued one of the FFHG investors a series of checks that bounced for insufficient funds.

The government's case is being handled by the Criminal Section of the Office's Long Island Division. Assistant United States Attorneys Bradley T. King and Andrew Wang are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Samantha Schroder and Legal Assistant Danielle Casey.

The Defendant:

ELIAS GHANEM II
Age: 38
Las Vegas, Nevada

E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 22-CR-520 (S-1) (GRB)