NYC Gazette

Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Andre Prince was sentenced by United States Circuit Judge Denny Chin to 24 months in prison for his participation in a fraudulent moving company scheme. Prince was convicted in December 2023 of conspiracy to commit wire fraud following a one-week trial. As part of the sentence, Prince was ordered to pay forfeiture amounting to $100,000.

Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Christie M. Curtis, Acting Assistant Director in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's New York Field Office; and Christopher A. Scharf, Special Agent in Charge at the U.S. Department of Transportation's Office of Inspector General (DOT-OIG) Northeastern Region, announced the sentence.

“The defendant enticed victims to use the moving companies he worked for and then held their belongings hostage to substantially higher prices and the threat of auctioning them off unless they agreed to the fraudulent demands,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “For his crime of conviction, it is Prince who will be moving -- to a federal prison. My Office is committed to protecting consumers from costly and fraudulent schemes in the moving industry.”

FBI Acting Assistant Director in Charge Curtis added: “Andre Prince enticed customers to entrust fraudulent moving companies with their household goods, only to financially extort them with threats of selling their belongings. Prince utilized his skills as a sales representative to prey upon more than 800 victims undergoing a stressful event by boxing them into misleading contracts and false estimates. May the defendant’s move to prison reflect the FBI’s dedication to disrupting widespread fraud schemes and deter future unlawful attempts to monopolize an industry."

“Today’s sentence stemming from the criminal investigation conducted with our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners demonstrates our commitment to detecting and prosecuting fraudulent household goods movers who take advantage of unsuspecting customers by holding their personal belongings hostage,” stated DOT-OIG Special Agent in Charge Scharf. “We will continue our vigorous efforts to root out bad actors from the moving industry and reinforce adherence to Federal laws and regulations designed to protect the public.”

As proven at trial, between January 2017 and August 2020, Prince and co-defendant Kristy Mak worked for several moving companies controlled by co-defendant Yakov Moroz under various names including Great Moving USA, Green Movers, New City Moves, Cross Country Moving and Storage, and Movers Consulting. Mak supervised Prince as a customer service representative while he served as a senior sales representative responsible for convincing individuals to choose one of these fraudulent companies.

The defendants lured customers through fake online reviews and low-cost transportation offers for household goods. After contracts were signed or even after loading customers' belongings onto trucks, new expenses were introduced unexpectedly. Customers faced drivers who threatened to hold their goods hostage unless additional fees—sometimes double or triple the original estimate—were paid.

In one conversation on Slack messaging app depicting their scheme tactics on move day, Prince reacted with “[rolling on the floor laughing emoji] that is so accurate.” The fraudulent scheme resulted in over $3 million wrongfully obtained from more than 800 victims.

Mak awaits sentencing after being convicted at trial on similar charges as Prince while Moroz remains a fugitive after absconding during pre-trial release.

Victims can file complaints with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration at https://nccdb.fmcsa.dot.gov/nccdb/home.aspx

The government’s case was handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Arun Bodapati and Elias Laris from the Office’s General Crimes Section with assistance from Special Agent Rebecca Sidhu and Paralegal Specialist Stephanie Heyward.

The Defendant:

ANDRE PRINCE (also known as “Allen Parks” and “Aaron”)

Age: 45

Taramac, Florida

E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 20-CR-342 (DC)