Fereidoun Khalilian (also known as "Prince Fred") is an American entrepreneur and the former COO of Monster Cable. He gained notoriety for his business ventures with high-profile figures such as Paris Hilton, with whom he co-owned Club Paris in Orlando, FL. ^{[1] [2]}

Career and controversies

Khalilian often introduced himself as a royal prince from the Middle East, a claim that has been debunked. ^[3] Khalilian was arrested in 2005 and 2007, on charges related to sexual assault and rape, with one charge being related to an employee of the night club he co-owned with Paris Hilton at the time. ^{[4] [5]}

Pokertribe.com

In 2014 Fereidoun was sued by Stefano Grossi who claimed he misappropriated $1.7 worth of Grossi's investment into Pokertribe.com, and excluded him from a deal with a Native American tribe for poker software. ^[6]

Khalilian raised approximately $10M in investment funds from the Native American tribes Cheyenne and the Arapaho's. Both tribes unsuccessfully sued Khalilian. Lawsuits alleged that Khalilian used much of their investment to pay off a $4 million settlement case from the Federal Trade Commission, which arose due to Khalilian's prior involvement with a telephone marketing company sending out automated calls to people about fake extended car warranties. ^{[7] [8]}

Monster Cable

In 2017 Khalilian was appointed as the COO of Monster Cable, a consumer electronics and manufacturing company. An article published on October 11, 2017, by Digital Trends described Khalilian as "a former telemarketing kingpin, wannabe reality TV personality, two-time FTC loser." ^[9]

In 2018, Khalilian exited as the COO, after employee's of Monster Cable sought restraining orders against him because he allegedly made threats of violence and mutilation against various employees. ^[10] Fereidoun then filed a lawsuit against Monster Cable, claiming executives at the company made false allegations against him, in order to defame him. A federal judged dismissed Khalilian's lawsuit. ^[11] [1]

Alleged murder-for-hire-plot

In 2019 Khalilian reportedly reconnected with one of his former employee's named Juan Esco, who was then working as an independent film producer and documentarian. Esco proposed a documentary to Khalilian, about his life controversies, with Esco telling Khalilian that he would garner notoriety from the documentary. However the purpose of the documentary was to expose Khalilian as con-artist and fraud. Once Khalilian found out about the documentary's true purpose, he became upset and agitated with Juan Esco. ^[12]

In March 2022, Khalilian reportedly solicited Michael Sherwood, (one of his bodyguards), to assassinate Juan Esco, paying him $12,500. Sherwood accepted the offer, but instead of carrying out the murder, warned Esco of the plot against him. Esco and Sherwood then purchased fake blood, and took staged photos which showed Juan's hands bound behind his back, laying face down in a pool of fake the fake blood they purchased. Sherwood then sent the photos to Khalilian. ^[13]

After staging the death, Esco contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation and reported the incident. The FBI expressed interest, but stated they needed more information. Sherwood then began acting as a confidential informant, recording phone calls and encounters between him and Khalilian. ^[14]

According to law enforcement sources, on June 20, 2023, Khalilian arranged to meet Sherwood in Las Vegas. Sherwood allegedly picked Khalilian up, and they drove around as a hidden camera recorded the audio and video of their encounter, during which Khalilian allegedly admitted his involvement in the attempted murder of Juan Esco. After Sherwood finished driving around with Khalilian, he dropped him off at a nearby Dunkin' Donuts, where federal agents were waiting to arrest him. ^[15]

Khalilian was officially charged with one count of "use of interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire" as well as one count of "conspiracy to witness tamper." ^[16]

Following Khalilian's arrest, the United States Department of Justice published a press release alleging that between August–September 2023 Khalilian, had contacted a witness in the case and instructed his family members to offer the witness a bribe. The press release also stated that Khalilian was ordered to be held without bail at the federal jail he is currently incarcerated in. ^[17]

References