California man used $5 million in coronavirus relief loans to buy luxury cars, federal authorities say – By Los Angeles Times Newsroom (Triblive) / May 9 2021
LOS ANGELES — An Irvine man was arrested on fraud charges this week after authorities say he used $5 million in pandemic relief loans to buy luxury sports cars, take lavish vacations and cover his personal expenses.
Mustafa Qadiri, 38, submitted bogus applications for federal loans under the Paycheck Protection Program on behalf of four Newport Beach businesses he purportedly ran, according to federal prosecutors. None of them is currently in business, they said.
Federal agents have seized Ferrari, Bentley and Lamborghini sports cars Qadiri bought with the loan money, along with $2 million from his bank accounts, according to the U.S. attorney’s office in Santa Ana.
Qadiri was indicted by a federal grand jury on four counts of bank fraud, four counts of wire fraud, six counts of money laundering and one count of aggravated identity theft.
His lawyer, Bilal Essayli, could not be reached for comment.
