RENO, Nev. (KOLO) – A Nevada man was sentenced to more than 15 years in prison after being convicted in a multi-million dollar COVID-19 relief fraud scheme.
Meelad Dezfooli will serve five years of parole after the DOJ says he fraudulently obtained more than $11 million in PPP loans and then laundered the funds through real estate transactions, gambling activity, and luxury purchases.
Dezfooli will also pay restitution in the amount of $11.7 million and forfeit two vehicles and five properties.
Dezfooli, who lives in Henderson, was able to obtain the funds by submitted three false applications on behalf of entities he controlled. He supported his applications with false documents, including tax records and a utility bill, as well as by grossly inflating the number of employees and payroll expense of each entity.
After obtaining the money, Dezfooli laundered it by paying for around 25 properties in Nevada, often using the alias James Dez, or a fictional entity called Holdings Trust.
The DOJ says that even after being indicted, Dezfooli continued to launder money, selling properties purchased with the illegally obtained PPP funds. He also used the money to fund his personal investment account, buy luxury cars, and gamble throughout Las Vegas.
Five homes were seized during the investigation.
Dezfooli was found guilty in September of 2024 on three counts of bank fraud, three counts of money laundering, and four counts of conducting transactions using criminally derived property.
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