SF: Florida Man Gets 14 Months In Federal Prison For Defrauding Williams-Sonoma

Bay City News

A Florida man was given 14 months in federal prison on Tuesday after pleading guilty to a kick-back scheme involving the Bay Area-based company Williams-Sonoma, federal prosecutors said.

Augusto Alizo admitted to conspiring with two people, one of which was a vice president at Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (WSI), to divert and pocket more than $4 million in real estate broker commission rebates.

WSI is based in San Francisco and operates Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn and West Elm home goods retailers.

Alizo was employed at a global logistics company that helped clients find commercial real estate, including large commercial warehouses.

According to prosecutors and Alizo's plea agreement, he did not tell his employers at his company that his now co-defendant and former coworker Kourosh Mirmehdi, to whom he directly reported, was helping WSI obtain commercial warehouse space.

By concealing the deal, prosecutors said Alizo, Mirmehdi and the WSI executive colluded to pocket real estate broker commissions rebates that should have gone to WSI. Instead, the payments went to a shell company owned by the WSI vice president and then distributed between the Alizo, Mirmehdi and the V.P.

As part of his plea agreement, Alizo admitted that he acted with the intent to deceive and cheat both his employer and WSI in order to commit fraud.

In all, Alizo said the three co-conspirators obtained a total of $4.1 million, and he personally pocketed $965,526.

Upon his indictment last April, Alizo was charged with one count of wire fraud conspiracy, four counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering conspiracy. Under the plea agreement, Alizo pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy.

In a memorandum filed for the sentencing, prosecutors argued that Alizo's involvement in the fraud conspiracy was critical. Rather than using his authority as a corporate executive to stop the fraud before it began, Alizo gave his direct report, co-defendant Mirmehdi, the green light to engage in fraud, identified how the conspirators would conceal the fraud, and ensured the fraud would not be discovered by his employer. As a result, Alizo pocketed nearly $1 million in fraud proceeds.

In addition to his prison term, Alizo has also been ordered to pay $965,526.51 in restitution to Williams-Sonoma. He is scheduled to surrender to custody on Dec. 2.

Mirmehdi pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering in May 2023.

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