Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Adam Kaplan Allegedly Attempted to Injure and Bribe Witnesses, Manufacture Evidence, Bribe Law Enforcement Officials, and Defraud Additional Victims
Earlier today, at the federal courthouse in Central Islip, a superseding indictment was filed that added two counts against Adam Kaplan for attempted obstruction of justice in connection with a grand jury investigation in the Eastern District of New York and during his pretrial release on fraud charges. The superseding indictment also added additional charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit bank fraud against Adam Kaplan for conduct, including while on pretrial release, as well as an additional charge of money laundering conspiracy against Adam Kaplan and Daniel Kaplan. In July 2023, Adam Kaplan and Daniel Kaplan, investment advisors with a financial services firm (Financial Services Firm), were charged in a 16-count indictment with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, investment advisor fraud and money laundering in connection with a scheme to defraud at least 50 victims of more than $5 million. The defendants, who are twin brothers, will be arraigned on the superseding indictment at a later date.
John J. Durham, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York and James E. Dennehy, Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), announced the charges.
“As alleged in the superseding indictment, before his arrest, and while he was aware of a grand jury investigation into his crimes, Adam Kaplan attempted to threaten and injure victims and witnesses and bribe law enforcement,” stated United States Attorney Durham. “But his disregard for the law and court-ordered rules didn’t stop there, he also repeatedly and flagrantly violated his conditions of pretrial release. This Office will not tolerate attempts by defendants to undermine the criminal justice process and will prosecute them to the full extent of the law.”
Mr. Durham thanked the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, Chicago office, for its work on the case.
“Adam Kaplan allegedly ordered threats be made to his victims and attempted to bribe authorities to disrupt a federal investigation into the brothers’ misconduct,” stated FBI Assistant Director in Charge Dennehy. “Kaplan’s alleged actions reflect remorselessness as he continued to make concerted efforts to protect his multimillion-dollar fraud scheme even following his initial arrest. The FBI will never tolerate individuals who prey upon populations for personal wealth, and then resort to extreme measures to conceal their egregious wrongdoings.”
As set forth in court filings and the underlying indictment, between May 2018 and November 2022, Adam Kaplan and Daniel Kaplan defrauded at least 50 clients of the Financial Services Firm, including some elderly and disabled victims, of at least $5 million. Between January 2023 and September 2024, Adam Kaplan and a co-conspirator defrauded additional individuals of approximately $1 million and also conspired to defraud a financial institution.
The superseding indictment charges that, between April 2023 and September 2024, while aware of a federal grand jury investigation into the brothers’ conduct, Adam Kaplan attempted to influence, obstruct and impede the underlying investigation, including through attempts to threaten, injure and pay off witnesses, and destroy evidence. Specifically, Adam Kaplan (i) ordered an associate to create a fake email from a victim so that Adam Kaplan could use the fake email as evidence at trial and to impeach that victim’s credibility; (ii) engaged in a months’ long fraudulent scheme to steal money from victims; and (iii) attempted to tamper with, threaten and pay off witnesses, including telling his associate that a victim needed “to fear,” that a victim should be “peeing blood / missing teeth and another visited / scared,” that a victim should be sent skull and crossbones imagery, and that his associate should “put [a victim’s] phone on fire . . . Seriously, please blow it up.” After his arrest, while on release on a multimillion-dollar bond, Adam Kaplan (i) attempted to bribe a Department of Justice official; (ii) continued his fraudulent schemes and continued to pay off witnesses; and (iii) committed credit card fraud. To perpetuate these crimes, Adam Kaplan used multiple burner phones to avoid detection and monitoring by law enforcement, used aliases, attempted to break into others’ email accounts and attempted to destroy evidence.
If you were a client of Adam Kaplan or Daniel Kaplan and would like to file a complaint, please visit www.iC3.gov. Please reference “Adam Kaplan” or “Daniel Kaplan” in your complaint.
The charges in the superseding indictment are allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The government’s case is being handled by the Criminal Section of the Office’s Long Island Division. Assistant United States Attorneys Adam Toporovsky and Paul Scotti are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Janelle Robinson.
The Defendants:
ADAM S. KAPLAN
Age: 35
Great Neck, New York
DANIEL E. KAPLAN
Age: 35
Great Neck, New York
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 23-CR-293(S-1) (JMA)