Rishi Kapoor, once a rising star in Miami real estate with ties to mayors in Miami and Coral Gables, was sentenced to 11 years and four months in federal prison Thursday after pleading guilty to money-laundering and payroll-tax conspiracy charges stemming from an indictment accusing him of directing an $89 million fraud scheme.
Kapoor, 42 and the former CEO of Location Ventures and its URBIN companies, appeared before U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore in Miami federal court Thursday afternoon in a beige jumpsuit, shackled, according to the Miami Herald. He was arrested in early March on a 37-count indictment.
What He Pleaded Guilty To
In May, Kapoor pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States by failing to remit employees’ payroll taxes for Social Security and Medicare between 2020 and 2022, and to a separate money-laundering charge over a $820,559 transfer from his personal bank account used as a down payment on a $5 million, 68-foot Princess yacht in 2022. He also did not file personal income tax returns from 2019 to 2023. The two counts carried a maximum sentence of 15 years.
What He Owes
Prosecutors say Kapoor owes at least $70 million in restitution to more than 50 investors in his South Florida residential projects, plus roughly $800,000 to the IRS. As part of his plea, he agreed to an $820,559 forfeiture money judgment and to forfeit a platinum ring bought with a $28,405 down payment, along with the yacht and a $5.9 million home in Coral Gables’ Cocoplum neighborhood, all of which prosecutors said were purchased with misappropriated investor funds.
Little Chance of Repayment
A restitution hearing has been set for November, but prosecutors have signaled they don’t expect much to come of it. The U.S. Attorney’s Office wrote in a filing this month that “there is no sign that Kapoor will be prepared at sentencing to make a meaningful restitution payment to his investors,” noting the ring and a luxury car appear to be his only remaining assets. “This was a fraud driven by want, not need,” prosecutor Elizabeth Young wrote.
Kapoor’s Own Words
In a letter to the judge ahead of sentencing, Kapoor wrote that he “fully accept[s] responsibility for my crimes without hesitation or excuse.” He described the toll on his family, writing that his relatives lost “not only millions of dollars but also the son and brother they believed in and relied on,” and that he had been ashamed “every minute of every day” since his company collapsed in July 2023.
