Fourteen individuals, including Indian-origin business owners and employees, have been charged in a $53 million fraud scheme related to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) in Texas.
The PPP, an $800 billion emergency loan program created in March 2020 as part of the $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, provided forgivable loans to help businesses maintain payrolls, hire back laid-off employees, and cover overhead costs. The easy application process effectively invited business owners to apply for the money.
In 2021, Dinesh Sah, 55, was sentenced to 11 years in prison after applying for a $24.8 million PPP loan and receiving over $17 million. Prosecutors said Sah used the money to buy homes in Texas, pay off mortgages on his homes in California, and purchase a Bentley convertible, a Corvette Stingray, and a Porsche Macan. He was forced to pay nearly $17.3 million in restitution and forfeit eight homes, six cars, and more than $9 million.
The Small Business Administration estimated that over $200 billion was disbursed in potentially fraudulent loans, about 17% of the overall $1.2 trillion handed out under the programs.
The Office of the Inspector General has seized or retrieved about $30 billion of the fraudulent loans, and investigations have resulted in 1,011 indictments, 803 arrests, and 529 convictions through May.
