NJ men accused of ripping off investors for $6.7M in fuel scheme

🔵 Middlesex County duo accused of scamming victims

🔵 Lied about fuel product investment contracts

🔵 Men instead spent millions on vehicles, family, business debt

Two Middlesex County men have been indicted by a state grand jury for allegedly cheating investors out of about $6.7 million.

Shahid Javed, of Old Bridge, and Wilfredo Topacio, of Woodbridge, used fake companies and identities to dupe investors into believing they would make large profits off of fuel products, according to state Attorney General Matthew Platkin.

Between March 2018 and April 2023, the 39-year-old Javed and 64-year-old Topacio defrauded investors into buying $1.1 million in investment contracts with Prime Petroleum and $5.6 million in investment contracts with Petro Traders Group, Platkin continued.

Instead of hefty profits and guaranteed returns from fuel-product investments — the duo was accused of pocketing the money and spending it on expensive vehicles, making payments to friends and family, paying off prior business debts, and other personal expenses.

Javed and Topacio also allegedly laundered the funds through bank accounts and corporate entities they controlled to pay the investors more than $500,000 in phony investment returns to keep the scam going.

They have each been charged with first-degree conspiracy, second-degree theft by deception, two counts of second-degree securities fraud, three counts of misconduct by a corporate official, three counts of second-degree impersonation, and two counts of first-degree money laundering.

Javed was separately charged with second-degree passing a bad check to an investor during the alleged scheme.

“Investment-fraud schemes prey on vulnerable victims with empty promises of huge profits and guaranteed returns,” Platkin said in a written release on Tuesday, adding “The time has come for them to be held accountable.”

Office of Securities Fraud and Financial Crimes Prosecutions Legal Chief Pablo Quiñones also called such cases “a top priority” for federal prosecutors.

Report a correction 👈 | 👉 Contact our newsroom