ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Leesburg resident Didier Kindambu, 48, was arrested this week and charged with fraudulently obtaining $2,501,753 in loans through the CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Buying a Cessna airplane and other luxury items with the federally funded money, according to the federal government.
Kindambu made his first appearance in federal court on Tuesday.
Prosecutors believe Kindambu carried out the scheme in connection with two businesses that he owns and created fraudulent payroll documentation for each business and then submitting that documentation in support of the PPP loan applications, said government officials.
Kindambu is charged with one count of bank fraud and faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison if convicted in court.
Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors, said federal officials.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Burke is prosecuting the case.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act is a $2.2. trillion economic stimulus package agreed on by U.S. Congress and President Donald Trump to help small businesses and jump-start the economy amid financial troubles across the country brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Businesses in the United States that applied for the CARES ACT loan varied, and was used for a variety of business purposes, including paying employees, keeping up with cost while business was limited, and some have used the money to adjust business models to better fit the needs of customers during the pandemic.
To learn more about the CARES ACT through the United States Treasury, click here.
