53-year-old indicted for $18 million in federal fraud
Marisela Nuno faces charges for submitting false claims to two pandemic relief funds, with prosecutors alleging she misstated payroll and revenue figures to secure the loans.
By Olivia Miller ·
A Los Angeles woman has been indicted for allegedly stealing $18 million from federal pandemic relief programs.
Marisela Nuno, 53, was charged by a federal grand jury on Tuesday with three counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Prosecutors state that Nuno submitted fraudulent applications to the Paycheck Protection Program and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program. They allege she obtained $15.7 million from the former and $2.6 million from the latter. Both initiatives were designed to assist businesses affected by the health crisis.
Officials say Nuno applied for loans on behalf of entities she claimed to own. The government asserts she knew the applications contained false statements regarding employee counts, average monthly payroll, gross revenues, and funding eligibility.
Authorities reported that Nuno used the funds to buy private property, pay relatives, and cover startup costs for new businesses.
Nuno faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each wire fraud count and 10 years for the money laundering charge. The case is scheduled for further proceedings in federal court.
