One of six brothers involved in a family criminal operation received a six-year sentence Monday for his role in a $20 million black market cellphone enterprise.
Talal Mustafa was one of 20 defendants who pleaded guilty and was convicted in U.S. District Court in March in connection with the ring, which involved stealing smartphones and other electronics to sell in the Middle East and China for grossly inflated prices.
The Mustafas reaped at least $4 million in profits in the past eight years, which they then used to keep their Twin Cities cellphone stores open. They allegedly mixed illicit and legitimate profits.
The six Mustafa brothers owned stores in Minneapolis, St. Paul and Robbinsdale, federal authorities said. The Mustafas used runners to travel across the country to steal phones or buy them from retailers using false identities.
Jamal Mustafa was considered the patriarch of the organization. The other four brothers are Edwan, Bilal, Naser and Nizer.
Rochelle Olson
