Reports

A rideshare driver from the Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles has been arrested on a five-count federal indictment charging him with fraudulently obtaining more than $2 million in COVID-19 pandemic business-relief loans on behalf of his nonexistent companies, which he instead used to buy cryptocurrency, the Justice Department announced today.

SAN DIEGO – Thomas Zolezzi of San Diego pleaded guilty in federal court today, admitting that he committed fraud to obtain almost $3 million intended to help those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In his plea agreement, Zolezzi admitted he submitted five loan applications containing false statements to trick lenders into providing the relief funds. He used the borrowed funds to pay his personal expenses. As part of his guilty plea, Zolezzi agreed to pay restitution of $700,884.75 to the Small Business Administration (“SBA”) and $2,238,910.24 to Capital Plus Financial.

A Florida tax preparer was charged in an indictment filed in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania yesterday with scheming to fraudulently obtain more than $7 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) and pre-pandemic Small Business Administration (SBA) loans, and to launder the proceeds of the illegal scheme.