Burnsville man pleads guilty to defrauding California company of $1.2 million – Twin Cities

A Burnsville man has pleaded guilty to wire fraud after federal authorities said he orchestrated a fraudulent scheme against a California company that netted him $1.2 million, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota.

According to court documents, Thomas Thanh Pham, 53, claimed to be a broker who could connect a San Jose, California electronics company with his alleged business affiliates in the same industry.

As the alleged broker and CEO of Enterprise Products LLC, Pham defrauded the San Jose company by claiming he could facilitate multimillion-dollar manufacturing and repair contracts between the company and other major electronics companies.

According to court documents, he submitted false documents, including fabricated contracts, letters and business proposals, and demanded that the company pay him a deposit of more than $1.2 million and sign a contract with him.

To “give the impression” that he was fulfilling his part of the deal, Pham supplied 20 samples of the electronic devices but failed to report that the devices had been stolen. Although the victim company demanded restitution, Pham used the funds for a series of “unauthorized uses and transactions.”

Pham pleaded guilty last week to one count of wire fraud.

The case was the result of an FBI investigation.