A tobacco company executive was arrested on April 12 after being charged with a conspiracy to evade the payment of millions of dollars in excise taxes on imported cigars.

Akrum Alrahib, 41, of Los Angeles, was charged in an indictment with conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud. The indictment also includes three charges against Alrahib relating to him allegedly not paying federal tobacco excise tax on cigars.

According to the indictment, Alrahib was the president of California-based Trendsettah USA, Inc. Trendsettah sold tobacco products such as large cigars and marijuana paraphernalia, known as “blunt wraps” (cigar papers), many of which were imported from the Dominican Republic. Alrahib allegedly underreported the federal tobacco excise tax that was due on imported cigars.

Alrahib faces up to five years in prison for the fraud conspiracy and violations of the Internal Revenue Code, and up to 20 years imprisonment on the wire fraud and wire fraud conspiracy charges.