Cisco reseller charged on £24m fraud

Local news reports US VAR boss and Cisco employees were allegedly involved in six-year scam

The boss of a US reseller has been charged with selling up to $37m (£24m) worth of counterfeit Cisco kit, with employees of the vendor reportedly involved in the scheme.

According to a story in the San Jose Mercury News, local man Cuong Cao Dang – also known as Calvin Dang – was arrested yesterday, following the filing of a federal grand jury indictment the day before. He stands accused of purchasing goods from Cisco employees, altering product serial numbers and illegally selling on to customers of his reseller, Network Genesis.

The company, which has reportedly now disconnected its listed phone line, is claimed to have posted revenue of more than $37m between 2006 and 2012, which is the alleged timeframe of the fraud. Officials allege that Dang used his money to buy items including 11 commercial and residential properties in his California hometown and a number of high-end cars, as well as putting cash into a college-fund savings account for his four children.

He faces charges on six counts of mail fraud, as well as conspiracy to commit mail fraud and money laundering. He is in jail pending bail proceedings, and will appear in federal court later today.