Businessman gets 5 years in fraud case involving African agency

AUGUSTA - A man accused of defrauding the development agency of the African kingdom of Swaziland has been sentenced to five years in federal prison for conspiring to cheat two American banks. <br> <br> U.S. District Judge B. Avant Edenfield also ordered Erwin David Rabhan on Tuesday to pay restitution of $11.3 million. <br> <br> Rabhan, of Swainsboro, pleaded guilty Nov. 27 to conspiracy to defraud Enterprise National Bank of Palm Beach, Fla., and AmTrade International Bank of Atlanta. <br> <br> He was indicted last year on 22 counts, including conspiracy, bank fraud and wire fraud. He was accused of inducing the Swazi agency Tibiyo Taka Ngwane to invest $6 million in a fictional equipment manufacturer, Polk Manley Machinery Inc., to build candy and baby-food factories. <br> <br> He used the money to fund letters of credit confirmed by AmTrade. <br> <br> Evidence also showed that Rabhan conspired to defraud Enterprise National Bank into making a $5 million loan to build a catfish processing plant in Wrightsville.

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