An Orange County, California man who fraudulently obtained $5 million in pandemic relief loans and then spent the money on lavish vacations, luxury sports cars and his own personal expenses was sentenced Friday to 41/2 years in prison, federal prosecutors said.
Mustafa Qadiri, 42, of Irvine, had obtained the funds by submitting loan applications to the federal Paycheck Protection Program, which Congress created in March 2020 to provide emergency aid to small businesses struggling to survive amid COVID-19 related shutdowns and other business interruptions.
The loans were designed to prevent employee layoffs, and recipients were authorized to use the funds on payroll, rent or mortgage payments or utilities, but not on personal expenses.
