Manhattan Diamond Dealer Sued For Swapping Real Diamonds For Fakes

A Manhattan diamond dealer with a history of gemstone fraud was indicted in what officials describe as a scheme to swindle his fellow merchants out of nearly half a million dollars by replacing their real diamonds with lab-grown imitations, Jake Offenhartz reported for the Associated Press (AP).

The culprit was among a group of ten defendants arrested in 2017 on federal charges of defrauding diamond wholesalers out of $9 million.

Prosecutors say Manashe Sezanayev invited reputable dealers to his store in New York’s diamond district earlier this year under the guise of purchasing true diamonds from them.

But while inspecting their product, he allegedly pocketed three diamonds worth $460,000, covertly swapping them with duplicates cut and inscribed to look like originals.

“Diamonds are forever, but this alleged scheme was short-lived,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement. Sezanayev, 41, pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges of grand larceny, a scheme to defraud, and criminal possession of a forged instrument.

“My client is presumed innocent, and he’s going to wait for his day in court,” his attorney, Boris Nektalov, said by phone.

Sezanayev was among a group of ten defendants arrested in 2017 on federal charges of defrauding diamond wholesalers out of $9 million. He was sentenced to one year in prison after pleading guilty and was ordered to pay $510,030 in restitution to one of the victims.