Miami developer charged with $85 million fraud scheme used to fund luxury yacht and lifestyle

Date: March 6, 2026

Contact: [email protected]

MIAMI - A federal indictment unsealed today charges a Miami real estate developer with orchestrating an $85 million fraud scheme, failing to pay millions in taxes, and lying to financial institutions to obtain funds to purchase a luxury yacht.

According to court documents, Rishi Kapoor, formerly of Miami, was the chief executive officer of Location Ventures, a Miami-based real estate development company that purported to develop projects in Coral Gables, Coconut Grove, Miami Beach, and Fort Lauderdale.

"The indictment alleges an $85 million fraud scheme in which investor funds intended for real estate development were diverted for luxury purchases, including a 68-foot yacht," said U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida. "It further alleges that the defendant withheld payroll taxes from employees but failed to turn that money over to the government, effectively stealing from his own employees. These are serious allegations that will now be addressed in federal court. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt."

As alleged, although Kapoor raised approximately $85 million from investors, most of the promised real estate projects were never built. Despite being entitled to a capped salary of $400,000 plus certain fees, Kapoor diverted substantially more funds for personal use, including the purchase of a 68-foot yacht and a residence in Cocoplum.

The indictment alleges that Kapoor misrepresented to investors the amount of his personal financial contribution to Location Ventures, claiming he had invested $13 million alongside his business partner and family when, in reality, he contributed roughly half that amount. Kapoor also allegedly deceived escrow agents to secure the release of pre-construction condominium deposits and then misappropriated those funds for personal expenses unrelated to the developments. As a result, condominium projects in Coconut Grove and Miami Beach were never built.

In addition, Kapoor is charged with withholding payroll taxes from Location Ventures employees but failing to remit those taxes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Instead, Kapoor allegedly diverted more than $2 million from company accounts for his personal benefit.

The indictment further alleges that Kapoor failed to pay his own personal taxes from 2019 through 2023, despite earning more than $2.8 million in income in 2022 and 2023 alone.

Kapoor is also charged with falsifying bank statements to inflate his account balances, failing to disclose a significant mortgage on his Cocoplum residence, and misrepresenting that his tax returns had been filed with the IRS-all to obtain more than $9 million in financing. One bank extended a $5 million line of credit to Location Ventures, while another loaned Kapoor $4.2 million to finance the yacht purchase.

The indictment charges Kapoor with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy to commit offenses against and to defraud the U.S., failure to pay payroll taxes, tax evasion, failure to file tax returns, and bank fraud. The indictment also includes forfeiture allegations, including a Rolex Daytona watch and 2.5 carat platinum ring.

If convicted, Kapoor faces up to 20 years in federal prison for each count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud; up to 10 years for money laundering; up to five years for each count of conspiracy to commit offenses against the U.S., failure to pay payroll taxes, tax evasion, and failure to file tax returns; and up to 30 years for each count of bank fraud.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission also filed a civil action against Kapoor (Case No. 23-cv-24903).

U.S. Attorney Reding Quinoñes, Special Agent in Charge Ronald A. Loecker of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Florida Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Brett D. Skiles of FBI Miami made the announcement.

U.S. Attorney Quinoñes commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI and FBI Miami.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elizabeth Young and Daya Nathan are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Grosnoff is handling asset forfeiture.

IRS-CI is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. It is the only federal law enforcement agency with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code. IRS-CI has 18 field offices located across the U.S. and maintains an international presence through attaché posts abroad.