FBI arrests ‘prince’ on wire fraud charge

A man accused of falsely claiming to be a “prince” and bilking investors in San Antonio of hundreds of thousands of dollars has been arrested on a charge of wire fraud.

Alex Tannous, a 38-year-old Lebanese native, appeared Friday in federal court after the FBI arrested him when he returned from abroad to San Antonio for a child custody hearing hearing, records show. He was ordered held without bond, pending a bail hearing in federal court on Tuesday.

For many years, Tannous “claimed to be a businessman and diplomat from the United Arab Emirates with close ties to Emirati royalty,” said a criminal complaint affidavit filed by the FBI. “In reality, Tannous was a skilled con artist who used his gifts of persuasion to bilk unknowing victims out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

“In general, Tannous executed his schemes by telling his victims, who were often San Antonio-area, small to medium sized business owners, that he could help bring their business into the UAE using financing sources to which he had access in the UAE,” the affidavit said. “To secure the financing, Tannous told his victims to pay thousands of dollars to him via entities he owned and controlled.”

One of the entities was called Equico Enterprises Inc.

The affidavit lists only one victim, whose software business facilitated the operation of ghost kitchens, which prepare orders for delivery and pick-up only. That victim was duped out of $70,000, the affidavit said.

If prosecutors decide to present the case to a grand jury, they could pursue additional counts. The wire fraud charge carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.

According to the affidavit, Tannous convinced “victim 1” to open ghost kitchens in the UAE and eventually the rest of the Middle East. Some of their conversations occurred at an office in Boerne. Witnesses told the Express-News they saw Tannous share that office with a former dean of St. Mary’s University School of Law, Stephen Sheppard.

The affidavit said Tannous claimed he was an Emirati official tasked with finding U.S. firms that could do business in the UAE. Tannous also allegedly suggested that he and the software firm owner form a joint venture to develop ghost kitchens, and said he could secure millions from a Emirati economic development fund.

Tannous sought $100,000 and the business owner wired $70,000 in four payments between June and August 2021 to an account in the name of Equico, the affidavit said. But the business venture never materialized, and the investor told the Express-News last year that he was struggling to get his money back.

In January 2023, an FBI agent visited a commercial office building in San Antonio where Tannous had leased office space under the name of Equico. However, Tannous wasn’t there.

Tannous was living with a new girlfriend in Florida at the time, the affidavit said.

On June 11, 2023, the ExpressNews published an article about investors who claimed Tannous had conned them out of hundreds of thousands of dollars through a variety of schemes.

The affidavit said Tannous booked a one-way flight from Miami to Dubai in the UAE two days after the article ran.

The Express-News reported that he told potential investors that he owned a bank that would pay a 14 percent interest rate on deposits. He also pitched wouldbe investors on an export business he said would make a lot of money selling goods through his network in the Middle East.

But court records reviewed by the Express-News told a different story — that Tannous lived off an allowance from his parents and the earnings and credit of his now-former wife. He filed for bankruptcy in early 2021 to shield himself from investors when they tried to recoup their money.

He was under federal investigation, and sources told the Express-News that investigators also wanted to learn more about Sheppard’s connection to Tannous and Equico. Sheppard had been Tannous’s lawyer in civil proceedings and helped him find other lawyers, records show.

Sheppard was not charged alongside Tannous. Sheppard’s lawyers, Cynthia Orr and Gerry Goldstein, have said Sheppard acted in his capacity as a lawyer for Tannous and has done nothing wrong.

The affidavit said Tannous did not return to the U.S. until he arrived in Miami on a flight from Mexico City on Jan. 11.

“I believe Tannous may have returned to the U.S. in anticipation of termination of a parental rights hearing, which is scheduled in Bexar County district court on February 12, 2024,” the federal agent said in the affidavit.

In federal court Friday afternoon, Tannous wore jeans and a light-pink dress shirt and was handcuffed.

U.S. Magistrate Richard Farrer asked him if he needed a court-appointed lawyer, but Tannous said he already had one. However, he didn’t identify the attorney. Farrer also asked him if he understood the allegations against him in the criminal complaint.

“I do understand, but the complaint —” Tannous began. The judge then interrupted him, telling him to say no more because anything he said could be used against him.

“Wait for your lawyer,” Farrer said.

“I have all the documents regarding this case,” Tannous said, attempting to explain why he should not be charged.

“You want to have the conversation with your lawyer,” Farrer added.

Prosecutors filed a motion saying Tannous is a potential flight risk, and sscheduled two hearings for Tuesday morning — one related to bail and the other to determine if there was probable cause for his arrest.

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