Nipun Desai, CARES Act Fraud, Louisiana 2024

California Man Pleads Guilty to Federal CARES Act Fraud in Louisiana

Nipun Desai, a 55-year-old former resident of Hammond, La., but now a California resident, pleaded guilty to making false statements related to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) in a New Orleans federal court.

According to court records, on January 25, 2021, Desai made false statements to an approved lender in order to obtain an SBA backed PPP loan in the amount of $146,947.50 for the Fairbridge Hotel in Metairie, LA. At the time of the loan application, Desai’s hotel was permanently closed and had no employees or payroll.

Desai faces up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, up to three years of supervised release, and the payment of a $100 mandatory special assessment fee. He is scheduled to be sentenced on October 8, 2024.

The CARES Act, signed into law by the President on March 27, 2020, provided emergency assistance to small business owners affected by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The two primary sources of funding for small businesses were the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) program.

The investigation into Desai's case was conducted by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs - Office of Inspector General, as part of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) Task Force. The PRAC was established to promote transparency and facilitate coordinated oversight of the federal government’s COVID-19 pandemic response.

U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans praised the work of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs - Office of Inspector General, the Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Bankruptcy Trustee’s Office (Region 5) in investigating this matter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward J. Rivera of the Financial Crimes Unit is in charge of the prosecution.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edla/pr/california-man-pleads-guilty-federal-cares-act-fraud