A San Fernando Valley film production accountant has been charged with federal charges accusing her of using stolen funds to stay at a Las Vegas hotel and using stolen funds to cover her luxurious lifestyle, including paying for an adult film actress, to embezzle more than $1.9 million from an independent film production.
Joshua Mandel, 46, of Woodland Hills, was charged with six counts of wire fraud by the Federal University Ju Court. He will appear in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles on September 10th and be arrested.
Mandel was CEO and chief financial officer of First J Productions Inc., a Woodland Hills-based company that provides accounting services for independent films, according to the indictment that returned Thursday.
In his role as a production accountant, Mandel managed cash flow, pay and expenses for film projects. He was an authorized user in the production company’s bank account with the authority to add funds to prepaid debit cards issued by Cashét cards commonly used in the film industry.
LA County Fire Brigade Chief under investigation for alleged insurance fraud
From 2019 to 2023, prosecutors allege that Mandel misappropriated the money by writing fraudulent checks, launching fraudulent wire transfers and focusing the money on a Cashét card account under his control, known as “Fun Fun Fun.”
The indictment explains more detailed details that are said to have used illegal funds to maintain a luxurious lifestyle, including spending more than $129,000 on a woman he met on the “Sugar Daddy” website, paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to a pornographic actress, and paying a variety of young women in pornographical vuis vigas and bused bulked obsions for porn) (in Las Vegas and busted obsions for porn) to pay a variety of young women in Las Vegas over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $24,000 over $12,000 over $24,000 over $12,000 over $24,000 over $12,000 over $24,000 over $12,000 over $24,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $24,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $24,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $24,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $24,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $24,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $24,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $12,000 over $1
To conceal his activities, Mandel has been accused of using funds from one production company to cover other production costs.
If convicted on every count, he faces the biggest penalty in prison for each wire fraud count.
The FBI is leading the investigation, and the case is being charged by U.S. Attorney Alexander B. Schwab, the assistant director of the criminal division.
Source link
