A federal jury has convicted a Nevada man of defrauding three banks of more than $11.2 million in COVID-19 pandemic relief funds intended to help small businesses impacted by the pandemic.
Meelad Dezfooli, 30, of Henderson, engaged in a scheme to submit fraudulent loan applications under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a program that provided loans to help small businesses continue paying employee salaries and certain other basic business expenses during the pandemic.
Dezfooli submitted three fraudulent PPP loan applications to federally insured banks, purportedly for the benefit of companies that the defendant controlled, and obtained more than $11.2 million in proceeds from those loans.
The evidence at trial showed that Dezfooli falsely represented certain material information in his loan applications, including information about payroll, employees, and use of the loan proceeds.
After fraudulently obtaining more than $11.2 million in PPP funds, Dezfooli laundered and/or spent the proceeds by, among other things: buying approximately 25 residences and two luxury cars, funding a personal investment account, and gambling extensively.
Dezfooli is scheduled to be sentenced on December 5 and faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison on each of the bank fraud counts, 20 years in prison on each of the money laundering counts, and 10 years in prison on each of the counts of engaging in monetary transactions in criminally derived property.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, U.S. Attorney Jason M. Frierson for the District of Nevada, and other officials made the announcement.
The IRS-CI, FRB-OIG, FDIC-OIG, and SBA-OIG investigated the case.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri said, ‘This conviction demonstrates the Justice Department’s commitment to holding accountable those who seek to exploit the COVID-19 pandemic for personal gain.’
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Key Facts
- State: Nevada
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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