LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A court date has been set for a Las Vegas man charged with fraud and money laundering after prosecutors said he submitted a fraudulent loan application to the Small Business Administration.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Brenda Weksler scheduled a jury trial for Oct. 17 for Ribal Hajj-Hussein, 28, who is charged with one count of wire fraud and two counts of money laundering.
Prosecutors say Hajj-Hussein, who appeared in court Thursday, turned in an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) application seeking more than $150,000 under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act on April 14, 2020.
But the application made to the SBA on behalf of his company, RHH Travel Consulting LLC — a non-operational business — was for COVID-19 relief funds he was not entitled to receive, according to allegations in the indictment.
Records show the travel company was registered with the Nevada Secretary of State’s Office in 2019, but the license was revoked.
Hajj-Hussein falsely represented the number of employees and gross revenue for his company, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice and the office of James Frierson, U.S. attorney for Nevada.
As part of the alleged scheme, Hajj-Hussein had the SBA deposit more than $150,000 in EIDL funds into a bank account. Later, Hajj-Hussein transferred those funds to other bank accounts and used them for personal expenses.
If convicted, the statutory maximum penalty is 40 years in prison.