Two men of Indian descent in the United States have pleaded guilty to a multimillion-dollar fraudulent scheme by obtaining loans as part of an economic relief package following the Covid-19 pandemic in the country, the Justice Component announced.
The Justice Department said in a statement that Nishant Patel, 41, and Harjeet Singh, 49, both of Houston, and three others participated in the fraudulent obtaining and laundering of millions of dollars in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans that the Small Business Administration (SBA) has collected. ) guarantees under the CARES Act.
They admitted to submitting fake and fraudulent PPP loan programs to the SBA and certain SBA-approved PPP lenders.
The five defendants also contributed to the fraudulently received PPP loan budget laundering by offering the accomplices blank and endorsed checks, which were made out to Americans posing as workers of the corporations that won the PPP loan, but who were actually workers. .
These fake paychecks were then cashed at check cashing centers controlled through other members of the conspiracy.
As part of the plan, Patel received a fake and fraudulent PPP loan of approximately $474,993 and Singh received two fake and fraudulent PPP loans totaling $937,379, he said.
The other three people involved in the fraud received a total amount of more than $1. 4 million, he added.
They are expected to be sentenced on Jan. 4 next year and face a maximum total sentence of five years in prison.
In addition to the five defendants, another user was convicted at trial for his participation in the scheme, and 15 others pleaded guilty to their involvement in the loan fraud scheme.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, of 2020 provides immediate and direct economic relief to American workers, families, small businesses, and industries impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
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