A Garland man who authorities say fled the United States while awaiting trial has been extradited from Qatar to face federal fraud and money laundering charges in Texas.
Abdullah Anwar, 28, arrived in Texas on Friday and was being held in Collin County, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas.
A federal grand jury indicted Anwar on charges of conspiracy to transport stolen property in interstate and foreign commerce, conspiracy to commit mail fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering.
Federal prosecutors said Anwar fled the United States for Pakistan while on pretrial release. He was later arrested in Qatar, and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs secured his extradition.
FBI Director Kash Patel said in the news release that Anwar was allegedly part of a money laundering network linked to more than $1 billion in losses over five years.
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The release did not specify how much of those losses were directly tied to Anwar or provide further details about his alleged role in the network.
Patel said the FBI Dallas investigation targeted operations involving fraudulent identification documents, counterfeit devices and theft rings involving cargo and goods in transit.
The case stems from a Homeland Security Task Force investigation involving several federal agencies, including the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Marshals Service.
Federal officials credited authorities in Qatar, including the country’s Ministry of Interior and Public Prosecution, with helping arrest and extradite Anwar.
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