Suspect in Loudoun Co. murder, arson was charged in 2002 fraud scheme involving Russian organized crime boss
Jacob Bogatin who was charged last week with felony murder and setting fire to an occupied dwelling in connection to the death of a Sterling Virginia woman has had another serious crime hanging over his head for decades one in which his co-defendant has been identified as a powerful Russian organized crime boss Related stories Montgomery Co accountant sent to federal prison for million COVID relief fraud scheme More than charged in billion physical condition care fraud schemes takedown Justice Department says Maryland men attempted to steal iPhones with fraud scheme jury finds Bogatin was arrested last week and charged in the death of -year-old Madelaine Samantha Akers a neighbor of Bogatin s According to the Loudoun County Sheriff s Office Bogatin set fire to a townhome in the block of Riptide Square in the Lowes Island neighborhood on Oct By the time first responders arrived the fire had spread to a second home and damaged a third Charging documents revealed the day after the fire Bogatin filed an insurance claim for more than double of what is owed on the in recent times foreclosed-upon home Bogatin was arrested on Oct and remains in custody He s scheduled for a preliminary hearing in Loudoun County District Court on Jan What happened more than years ago According to federal court records in Bogatin and three other men were indicted in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on charges of mail fraud money laundering false filings with the Securities Exchange Commission as well as Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization conspiracy counts which are often used in organized crime prosecutions The situation in Pennsylvania never went to trial because Bogatin s three co-defendants fled and have been declared fugitives to this day One co-defendant Semion Mogilevich has been identified by the U S Department of State as a transnational organized crime boss operating from Russia and other countries In the Russian Ministry of the Interior identified Mogilevich as the boss of more than criminal associates operating in more than thirty countries in Europe Asia and North America federal prosecutors explained According to an online desired poster starting in a million reward has been offered for information leading to Mogilevich s arrest and or conviction A superseding indictment in Pennsylvania revealed the group had formed a company YBM Magnex International which claimed to produce industrial magnets at its plant in Budapest selling to the U S and other countries However the business was allegedly a front At the time federal prosecutors announced the group created fraudulent books and records that were designed to conceal YBM s fraudulent operations from securities regulators auditors and the investing residents The group is also charged with generating false bank statements invoices customer lists and shipping documentation as well as funneling proceeds from the sale of YBM stock to closely-related parties and entities to create the false appearance of commercial transactions on YBM s books and records What happened in the past limited days Since his three co-defendants in the indictment are fugitives Bogatin has never gone on trial for his alleged involvement in the YBM Magnex occurrence In Bogatin was circulated on million bond Over the next limited years conditions of home confinement and electronic monitoring were reduced It s not instantly clear when Bogatin moved to Loudoun County According to a filing from last week on Oct requesting that a judge order a bail violation hearing Keri Foster a federal pretrial services officer in Philadelphia described that Bogatin checked in as usual on Oct According to Foster He published his residence in Virginia had burned down on Friday October He published two other residences in his neighborhood had been destroyed in the fire During the conversation this officer searched online for information on the fire and located a news article that verified the information the defendant had provided and further informed that human remains had been located in one of the residences Foster explained the next day Loudoun County Supervisory Pretrial Officer TJ Wheeler contacted her to advise that the defendant is being investigated for arson and felony murder and that he had been arrested that day Contacted by WTOP Tuesday Loudoun County Sheriff s Office spokesman Thomas Julia announced We are aware of the federal interest in him and are continuing our local scrutiny and where it may take us Julia wouldn t discuss whether Bogatin was on the LCSO radar before last week s interaction Bogatin s attorney in the Philadelphia indictment Eric Sitarchuck declined to comment when contacted by WTOP Source
