A San Diego man who ran a fraud scheme that bilked investors, while also taking in millions from ill-gotten pandemic loans, was sentenced Friday to nearly two decades in prison.
Denny Bhakta was convicted by a San Diego federal jury of more than two dozen securities fraud, bank fraud and money laundering counts for schemes that bilked relatives, close friends, and governmental institutions out of millions.
Bhakta was sentenced Friday to 235 months in prison, five months shy of a 20-year term.
He was initially charged with soliciting investments for his companies, Fusion Hotel Management LLC and Fusion Hospitality Corp., then using investors’ funds on personal expenses and to pay off other investors, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Those personal uses of the investor funds included buying expensive vehicles and going on gambling sprees. Prosecutors described one instance of Bhakta losing $1 million at a Las Vegas casino in less than eight hours.
Investors were told Bhakta’s companies would purchase discounted blocks of hotel rooms from Hilton, then sell those rooms for a profit to United Airlines and other companies.
Bhakta provided fabricated bank records and fake agreements with Hilton and United Airlines to make Fusion’s business dealings appear legitimate, according to prosecutors, who said Bhakta took around $35 million from investors, including his uncle, who lost $4.5 million.
His other victims include a childhood friend who lost hundreds of thousands of dollars; a friend of his family who lost $1.6 million; a high school classmate and her father who together lost more than $800,000; a cousin who lost $40,000, and an 88-year-old investor who lost $50,000.
Two years after the investment fraud charges were filed, federal prosecutors charged Bhakta in connection with 18 Paycheck Protection Program loans he applied for, totaling $4.4 million.
They allege Bhakta misrepresented his businesses’ payroll expenses, number of employees, and how the money would be spent. He also used some of the investment fraud victims’ names, claiming they were Fusion employees in order to secure the loans.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Man Who Bilked Uncle, Friends, Government of Nearly $40M Headed to Prison )
Also on site :