United States v. Makani

Opinion

Case: 25-40495 Document: 50-1 Page: 1 Date Filed: 07/24/2026

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

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United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit

No. 25-40495 Summary Calendar FILED ____________ July 24, 2026 Lyle W. Cayce

United States of America, Clerk

Plaintiff—Appellee,

versus

Rahool Amin Makani,

Defendant—Appellant.

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Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas USDC No. 4:23-CR-159-1

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Before Wiener, Stewart, and Richman, Circuit Judges. Per Curiam: * Rahool Amin Makani appeals his conviction for laundering monetary instruments. Specifically, he argues that his guilty plea was not knowing and voluntary because a new page was added to the written factual basis for his plea months after the plea was taken.

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*

This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5.

Case: 25-40495 Document: 50-1 Page: 2 Date Filed: 07/24/2026

No. 25-40495

“Because a guilty plea involves the waiver of constitutional rights, it must be voluntary, knowing, and intelligent to be valid.” United States v. Avalos-Sanchez, 975 F.3d 436, 443 (5th Cir. 2020) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). Our review of the validity of the guilty plea is limited to plain error here because Makani did not raise the issue in the district court. See id.

Here, as the Government contends, the record of the plea hearing shows that Makani signed and agreed to the seven-page factual basis, notwithstanding that the copy that was initially filed in the district court omitted page three. Accordingly, we perceive “no error, much less plain error.” Id.

AFFIRMED.