Leader of Racketeering and Gambling Organization Sentenced to More than Eight Years in Prison

(Alexandria, VA) – Raj Kumar Bansal, 63, of Annandale, Virginia, was sentenced today to 100 months in prison by United States District Judge Claude M. Hilton based on his conviction for running an illegal gambling and loan sharking organization in northern Virginia. Chuck Rosenberg, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Joseph Persichini, Jr., Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation; Charles Pine, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation; and Colonel David M. Rohrer, Chief of Police, Fairfax County Police Department also announced that Bansal forfeited $2,500,000 in proceeds of the criminal organization.

At sentencing, Judge Hilton found Bansal was the leader of an organization operating and managing an illegal gambling and loan sharking business and laundering the profits of that business from 1995 through 2007. Bansal was also found to have attempted to tamper with witness testimony in order to obstruct justice during 2006 and 2007. As part of Bansal’s sentence, he is also prohibited from participating in the lending or mortgage businesses for three years after his release from prison.

Two other defendants, Sharon Rudolph Connelly, 67, of Springfield, Virginia, and Donovan Anthony Moncrieffe, 39, of Alexandria, Virginia, were convicted at trial before Judge Hilton on October 23, 2007. Connelly faces up to 20 years in prison and will be sentenced on January 25, 2008. Moncrieffe also faces up to 20 years in prison and will be sentenced on February 8, 2008.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, and the Fairfax County Police Department investigated the case. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Daniel Grooms and Edmund Power.

Washington Field Office Home Page

Press Releases

FBI Home Page