Iranian man pleads not guilty in bank fraud case
GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) – An Iranian national accused of selling financial information stolen from thousands of customers at three southern Mississippi banks was arrested after flying to New York upon winning a lottery that allowed him to obtain a U.S. permanent resident visa.
The Sun Herald reports that a federal agent’s affidavit says 30-year-old Milad Rezaei Kalantari pleaded not guilty to a 16-count indictment Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Gulfport.
Kalantari is accused of operating websites that sell stolen financial information.
In December, federal agents investigating Kalantari learned he had won what is known as “the green card lottery” and would be flying to the U.S. Later that month, authorities arrested Kalantari upon his arrival at New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport.
It is unclear whether he has an attorney.
