Zadeh Kicks Owner Sentenced to Nearly 6 Years in Federal Prison

It’s been over three years since the Zadeh Kicks saga formed a cloud over the entire sneaker resale scene, and the federal government finally got the conviction it was seeking. According to a press release from the United States Attorney’s Office, Michael Malekzadeh, owner of Zadeh Kicks, has been sentenced to 70 months in federal prison.

Malekzadeh founded his Zadeh Kicks enterprise in 2013 and became one of the biggest resellers in the sneaker space. The company was notorious for its pre-order system, which allowed customers and other resellers to secure unreleased sneakers for relatively cheap prices compared to the true aftermarket value. Essentially, Zadeh Kicks operated as a Ponzi scheme where today’s pre-orders would help fund the costs of previously placed ones, but one day the pyramid collapsed.

In 2022, customers of Zadeh Kicks experienced longer and longer shipping times, and the online sneaker community began to speculate that something was awry. The company officially filed for receivership in May 2022, which basically means that control of the business was handed to an external party to manage assets in an effort to pay off the money owed to customers.

$65 million was owed to customers who placed pre-orders with the company, and court documents revealed that Zadeh Kicks was sitting on nearly 60,000 sneakers in inventory. The total value of the inventory was estimated between $12 million and $20 million, far from what was actually owed to customers.

The receiver initially planned to sell 1,100 pairs from Malekzadeh’s personal collection, with the thought being that the majority of the company’s inventory would be sold in private deals to bulk buyers. However, the eBay account “pacific_kickz” was revealed to be connected with the receiver. Around 37% of the 60,000 pairs were sold on eBay, with the rest being sold to private buyers, consignment outlets, and independent retailers.

Following all of this in 2022, things went quiet on the news front. Over the following years, the government seized Michael Malekzadeh’s property and assets, which included luxury cars from Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Porsche as well as watches, jewelry, and handbags. The value of these assets totaled around $7.5 million.

The investigation also revealed Malekzadeh “conspired to provide false and altered financial information to numerous financial institutions—including providing altered bank statements—on more than 15 bank loan applications.” The company received more than $15 million in loans from these doctored applications.

Fast forward to March 20, 2025, when Michael Malekzadeh pled guilty to charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit bank fraud. In his plea agreement, Malekzadeh agreed to pay restitution in full to the victims. He was officially sentenced to 70 months in federal prison on January 6, 2026. A hearing regarding the restitution is set for March 31, 2026. The plea agreement also includes 5 years of supervised release and an order to forfeit more than $15 million in assets.

“This million-dollar fraud was fueled by the defendant’s insatiable greed and wreaked havoc on the lives of his victims and their families—delaying home purchases, retirements, and engagements,” said Scott E. Bradford, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Carrie Nordyke stated, “The devastating effects of financial crime are real, as Mr. Malekzadeh’s greed harmed many lives. The consequences for financial crime are equally as real however, as shown in Mr. Malekzadeh’s sentencing.”

Nicholas Vlahos

Sneakerhead from South Florida who turned his passion into a career. When not writing for Sole Retriever, I enjoy attending concerts, catching the latest movies, and trying new food. Email: nick@soleretriever.com