A 54-year-old Indian-origin man named Pardeep Basra, residing in Houston, has received a prison sentence of three years and five months for his involvement in a COVID-19 relief fraud ring.
This group fraudulently obtained over $20 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the CARES Act. The ringleader, Amir Aqeel, was handed a 15-year prison sentence for orchestrating the scheme.
Basra and his co-conspirators submitted over 75 fraudulent PPP loan applications in 2020, inflating employee counts and payroll expenses while submitting false bank records and federal tax forms.
Some participants were paid substantial kickbacks for their roles in submitting false loan applications. To launder the proceeds, they issued counterfeit paychecks totaling more than $3 million.
Federal agents executed 45 seizure warrants in connection with the case, confiscating assets such as properties, a Porsche, and a Lamborghini that had been purchased with fraudulently obtained funds.
The fraud ring’s actions exploited programs intended to aid businesses and individuals affected by the pandemic, diverting funds meant for pandemic relief into their own pockets.
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