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Man Sentenced to 16 Years for $3.7 Million COVID-Relief Fraud Scheme
Kevin Aguilar used fraudulent PPP and EIDL loans to purchase Texas properties and luxury items, defrauding federal pandemic relief programs.
TRENTON, NJ — A former Farmingdale, New Jersey resident has been sentenced to 192 months (16 years) in federal prison for orchestrating a multi-million-dollar fraud scheme that exploited federal pandemic relief programs intended to support struggling small businesses, according to U.S. Attorney Alina Habba.
Kevin Aguilar, 54, pleaded guilty to multiple federal charges including bank fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, and aggravated identity theft. His sentencing took place in Trenton federal court before U.S. District Judge Michael A. Shipp.
Between April 2020 and April 2021, Aguilar submitted seven fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan applications and three fraudulent Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) applications, claiming to represent four different businesses. These applications yielded approximately $3.3 million in PPP funds and $450,000 in EIDL funds.
According to court records, Aguilar laundered the funds through businesses he controlled, falsely representing legitimate financial activity. He then used the fraudulently obtained funds to purchase residential real estate in Sherman, Texas, a $100,000 truck, and cover other personal expenses.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Shipp sentenced Aguilar to five years of supervised release and ordered him to pay $3,772,567 in restitution. The court also issued a forfeiture judgment in the same amount and approved the seizure of $1.5 million from twelve bank accounts, along with three real properties in Texas acquired through the fraudulent proceeds.
The case was investigated by multiple federal agencies, including the FDIC Office of Inspector General, IRS-Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Social Security Administration, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey.
The prosecution team included Assistant U.S. Attorneys David V. Simunovich, Jennifer S. Kozar, and Peter Laserna, working under the umbrella of the District of New Jersey COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Strike Force, one of five task forces established by the U.S. Department of Justice to address widespread pandemic relief fraud.
The Department of Justice continues to encourage the public to report potential COVID-19 fraud via the National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or the NCDF Web Complaint Form.
