Protective Petition — United States v. Mahad Ibrahim, No. 0:22-cr-00124-003 (NEB/DTS), In re: Ancillary Proceeding as to 5657 Maple Drive, Lewis Center, Ohio (Dkt. 986, D. Minn.)

Summary

In this pro se protective petition filed July 2, 2026 in the District of Minnesota (Case No. 0:22-cr-00124-003 (NEB/DTS), Doc. 986), Sahur Aser asks for a hearing under 21 U.S.C. § 853(n) on an ownership interest in a home in Lewis Center, Ohio, and for the Preliminary Order of Forfeiture (ECF No. 962) in the case against Mahad Ibrahim to be amended to recognize it. The petition says Aser, a registered nurse who is not a defendant, took title with Ibrahim under a Survivorship Deed at a closing on May 14, 2021, funded by the sale of two prior residences, a construction loan and $2,500 of Aser's own money. It argues that every charged act, including the $200,000 payment charged as money laundering (Count 36), came after that date. Aser reports receiving notice of the forfeiture order on June 4, 2026.

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CASE 0:22-cr-00124-NEB-DTS Doc. 986 _ Filed 07/02/26 Page 1of7

RECEIVED

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

DISTRICT OF MINNESOTA JUL 02 2026
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, CLERK, U.S. DISTRICT COURT
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA
Plaintiff,
Vv. Case No. 0:22-cr-00124-003 (NEB/DTS)

MAHAD IBRAHIM,

Defendant.

In re: Ancillary Proceeding as to 5657 Maple Drive, Lewis Center, Ohio 43035

PROTECTIVE PETITION OF SAHUR ASER FOR HEARING PURSUANT TO
21 U.S.C. § 853(n) AND FED. R. CRIM. P. 32.2(c)

Petitioner Sahur Aser respectfully petitions this Court, pursuant to 21 U.S.C. § 853(n) and
Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 32.2(c), for a hearing to adjudicate her independent
ownership interest in the real property at 5657 Maple Drive, Lewis Center, Ohio 43035 (the
“Property”), and to amend the Preliminary Order of Forfeiture (ECF No. 962) to recognize
and protect that interest.

This is a protective petition filed to preserve Ms. Aser’s rights within the time allowed by 21
U.S.C. § 853(n)(2). Ms. Aser is in the process of retaining counsel and expressly reserves
the right to supplement or amend this petition, including with further factual detail, legal
authority, valuation analysis, and her rights of contribution as an Ohio co-owner, and to be
heard through counsel once retained.

Statement of Petitioner’s Interest (21 U.S.C. 8 853(n)(3))

1. Petitioner is an innocent third party, not a defendant. Sahur Aser is not a defendant in
this action. She has not been charged with any crime. She does not appear in any charging
document, plea agreement, or forfeiture motion. She is a registered nurse at The Ohio
State University Wexner Medical Center, where she earns her own income. She is an
innocent co-owner who helped acquire, and has for five years sustained with her own
earned income, the family home where she lives with her three children — in the good-faith
belief that it was lawfully acquired and maintained.

2. Nature and extent of the interest. Ms. Aser is a co-owner of the Property. Title is held
under a recorded Survivorship Deed (Exhibit 1) (Ohio Rev. Code § 5302.17) CANNED

iS. DISTRICT COURT MPLS |
CASE 0:22-cr-00124-NEB-DTS Doc.986_ Filed 07/02/26 Page 2of7

Farm Land Development Company, LLC, naming the grantees as “Mahad Ibrahim and
Sahur Aser” and conveying the Property to them “for their joint lives, remainder to the
survivor of them.” Ms. Aser therefore holds an undivided present ownership interest in
the Property together with a right of survivorship.

3. Time and circumstances of acquisition — the interest vested on May 14, 2021.

Ms. Aser took title to the real property at the closing on May 14, 2021, in her own name,
openly, as a genuine co-owner — not as a nominee for anyone. At that time she and

Mr. Ibrahim were engaged but not yet married; she took title in her own name as an
independent co-owner, not by virtue of any marital relationship. Her ownership interest
is therefore her own — it does not derive from, and it predates, any marital interest in the
Property. Her undivided ownership interest in the real property has been vested in her
continuously since that date.

4. Her ownership interest encompasses the home as part of the real property. The
Survivorship Deed conveyed the real property to the co-owners. The residence was
constructed on the property after closing; under Ohio law, the improvements became part
of the real property and are owned in the same manner as the land. Ms. Aser’s undivided
interest therefore encompasses the home and all improvements as part of the same
realty she has co-owned since May 14, 2021 — not a separate, later-acquired asset. Her
acquisition of that interest — the deed and the funds that closed it — preceded and was
independent of any conduct charged in this case.

5. Source of the acquisition funds. The acquisition was funded by Mr. Ibrahim — then
Ms. Aser’s fiancé — through the sale of two prior residences, together with a regulated
bank construction loan and Ms. Aser’s own funds. The May 14, 2021 closing was funded by:

a. proceeds from the sale of the prior residence at 6452 Killdeer Drive (sale price
$673,000; Exhibit 2), wired to the title agency on April 30, 2021;

b. proceeds from the sale of the prior residence at 1942 Washburn Avenue (sale price
$340,000; Exhibit 3);

c. aconstruction loan from Independent Bank, a federally regulated mortgage lender
(NMLS No. 712877); and

d. Ms. Aser’s own contribution of $2,500, paid by cashier’s check drawn on her personal
Chase bank account, payable to the builder, 3 Pillar Homes, dated May 3, 2021.

None of the funds used to acquire the Property or to fund the closing were proceeds of the
offenses charged in this case. The closing predated the earliest charged act.

6. The payment the government identifies as tainted came after — and did not create
— Ms. Aser’s ownership interest. The $200,000 payment charged as the money-
laundering offense (Count 36, on or about August 20, 2021) was made after the closing, as
a construction-phase payment to the builder. It neither created nor transferred Ms. Aser’s
CASE 0:22-cr-00124-NEB-DTS Doc. 986 _ Filed 07/02/26 Page 3 of 7

ownership interest, which already encompassed the real property she had co-owned
since May 14, 2021.

7. The charged acts postdate the vesting of Ms. Aser’s interest. On information and
belief, every act giving rise to this forfeiture occurred after May 14, 2021. The sequence is
as follows:

Acquisition of the Property — Ms. Aser’s interest vests:

Date Event

January 19, 2021 Home search begins; Lot 8592, Evans Farm,
selected (3 Pillar Homes)

March 16, 2021 Construction contract entered with 3 Pillar
Homes, LLC

April 30, 2021 Prior residence at 6452 Killdeer Drive sold
($673,000); proceeds wired to the title agency

May 7, 2021 Prior residence at 1942 Washburn Avenue sold
($340,000)

May 14, 2021 Closing on 5657 Maple Drive; Survivorship

Deed vests Ms. Aser’s undivided co-
ownership of the real property.

After Ms. Aser’s interest vested — charged acts and later construction payments:

Days after
Date Event vesting

June 1, 2021 Construction payment to builder ($120,000), identified +18
by the government as tainted

August 2, Charged wire fraud (Count 5) +80
2021

on or about Charged money laundering (Count 36) — $200,000 +98
August 20, construction payment to builder

2021

November 24, Construction payment to builder ($300,000), identified +194
2021 by the government as tainted

Each charged act, and each payment the government identifies as tainted, occurred after
Ms. Aser’s undivided ownership interest in the real property had already vested.

8. Ms. Aser has contributed to the home for five years, from lawful income. For
approximately five years since the closing, the mortgage, property taxes, homeowner’s
insurance, association dues, maintenance, and improvements to the Property have been
paid, as they came due, from the lawful earned income of Ms. Aser and her husband —
not from any proceeds of the charged offenses. Ms. Aser has contributed to those costs
CASE 0:22-cr-00124-NEB-DTS Doc. 986 Filed 07/02/26 Page 4 of 7

from her own earned income as a registered nurse. She does not, in this protective petition,
undertake to apportion the payments dollar-by-dollar; she reserves her rights of
contribution as an Ohio co-owner (Ohio Rev. Code 8§ 323.48, 5307.21) for her
supplemental petition and for the hearing.

9. No fraud proceeds, no knowledge, and a good-faith belief the home was lawful.
Ms. Aser personally used no fraud proceeds and received none. She did not participate in
the food program, the billing conduct, or any activity charged in this case, and she had no
knowledge of any criminal activity or that the Property could be subject to forfeiture.
Throughout, she believed the home had been lawfully acquired and was being maintained
with the family’s earned income. When she acquired her interest, no charges had been
filed and the charged acts had not yet occurred.

10. The Property is the family home of three innocent children. The Property is the
primary residence of Ms. Aser and her three minor children, who live there with her: a 15-
year-old enrolled at the local high school in the Olentangy Local School District, about two
years from graduation; a 3-year-old with a disability who receives special-education
services under an active Individualized Education Program whose placement is tied to the
family’s residence in that district; and a 1-year-old who has never lived anywhere else. The
children are innocent of any wrongdoing. A forced sale would displace them from their
home, their school district, and — for the 3-year-old — an established IEP placement.

11. Timeliness. Ms. Aser received direct written notice of the Preliminary Order of
Forfeiture (ECF No. 962) on June 4, 2026. This petition is filed within 30 days of that date
and is therefore timely under 21 U.S.C. § 853(n)(2). Ms. Aser reserves the right to
supplement this petition.

Legal Basis

12. Vested-interest priority — § 853(n)(6)(A). Under 21 U.S.C. 8 853(n)(6)(A), the Court
shall amend the order of forfeiture where a petitioner’s interest “was vested in the
petitioner rather than the defendant ... at the time of the commission of the acts which
gave rise to the forfeiture.” The government’s interest arises only by relation back, “upon
the commission of the act giving rise to forfeiture” (21 U.S.C. § 853(c)), and can be no
greater than what the defendant held at that moment. Because Ms. Aser’s undivided co-
ownership vested on May 14, 2021 — before both charged acts — it falls outside what
vested in the United States and must be recognized and excluded from the forfeiture.

13. Bona fide purchaser — § 853(n)(6)(B) (alternative). In the alternative, Ms. Aseris a
bona fide purchaser for value who was, at the time she acquired her interest, reasonably
without cause to believe the Property was subject to forfeiture (21 U.S.C. 8 853(n)(6)(B)):
she gave value of her own, acquired her interest through a regulated lender and title
company before any charge was filed, and had no knowledge of the conduct charged in

this case.
CASE 0:22-cr-00124-NEB-DTS Doc. 986 Filed 07/02/26 Page 5 of 7

14. The government must trace; Ms. Aser need not. The United States may forfeit only
property it can trace to the offense, and bears the burden of establishing that nexus.

Ms. Aser bears no burden to trace the lawful funds used to acquire, build, and sustain the
home. At most, the government’s interest is a minority fraction of the Property — limited to
the defendant’s share and to amounts the government can actually trace to the offense,
and subject to Ms. Aser’s vested ownership and her rights as an Ohio co-owner. Full
valuation analysis, supporting authorities, and Ms. Aser’s contribution claim are reserved
for her supplemental petition.

Relief Requested
WHEREFORE, Ms. Aser respectfully requests that the Court:

1. Conduct a hearing pursuant to 21 U.S.C. § 853(n)(4) and Fed. R. Crim. P. 32.2(c) to
adjudicate her interest in the Property;

2. Amend the Preliminary Order of Forfeiture (ECF No. 962) to recognize and exclude
Ms. Aser’s independent ownership interest under 21 U.S.C. § 853(n)(6)(A) and, in the
alternative, § 853(n)(6)(B);

3. Limit any forfeiture of the Property to the defendant's fractional, traceable interest,
subject to Ms. Aser’s ownership interest and her rights of contribution as an Ohio co-owner,
to be established at the hearing;

4. Permit Ms. Aser to supplement or amend this petition and to be heard through counsel
once retained; and

5. Grant such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper to protect the
rights of an innocent co-owner whose interest in the family home vested before the
charged offenses.

EXHIBITS

e Exhibit 1 — Recorded Survivorship Deed, 5657 Maple Drive (Delaware County,
Ohio), grantees Mahad Ibrahim and Sahur Aser. (Proof of Petitioner’s ownership

interest; J 2.)

e Exhibit 2— Proof of Sale, 6452 Killdeer Drive (settlement statement).
(Corroborates the source of acquisition funds; 7] 5.)

e Exhibit 3— Proof of Sale, 1942 Washburn Avenue (settlement statement).
(Second prior residence sold to fund the acquisition; 5.)

Additional documentation — including the closing disclosure, loan package, prior-sale wire
confirmation, and carrying-cost records — will be presented with Ms. Aser’s supplemental

petition and at the hearing.
CASE 0:22-cr-00124-NEB-DTS Doc. 986 _ Filed 07/02/26 Page 6 of 7

VERIFICATION

|, Sahur Aser, declare under penalty of perjury pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1746 that | have read
the foregoing Protective Petition, that | am the petitioner named in it, and that the factual
statements in it are true and correct to the best of my knowledge, information, and belief.

Executed on: ut 12 , 2026

Sahur Aser

Respectfully submitted,

Sahur Aser, Petitioner, Pro Se
5657 Maple Drive
Lewis Center, Ohio 43035

Email: sahuraser22@gmail.com
CASE 0:22-cr-00124-NEB-DTS Doc. 986 Filed 07/02/26 Page 7 of 7

OHIO ‘STATUTORY SHORT FORM OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT?’ — INDIVIDUAL

State of Ohio

County of Lh ALOU: Z

Ss.

The foregoing instrument was acknowledged

welt, before me this W/1/20h by

<= a Sobor Aséc

Name of Person Acknowledging

Signature of Person Taking Acknowledgment

Title or Rank

Affix Seal Here

OPTIONAL

Completing this information can deter alteration of the document or fraudulent reattachment
of this form to an unintended document.

Description of Attached Document

4
Title or Type of Document: [kr ) fy LL Han
Document Date: PL L20X, Number of Pages: —
Signer(s) Other Than Named Above: ——

M1908-05 (09/19)

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