A U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer has been arrested for allegedly defrauding a COVID-19 relief program. Amer Aldarawsheh, 45, from Moreno Valley, is accused of using two fake businesses to obtain nearly $150,000 from the Small Business Administration’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program.
Federal prosecutors announced the indictment on Wednesday, charging Aldarawsheh with five counts of wire fraud. They claim he misled the SBA and misused the funds for personal gain. Aldarawsheh has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Between 2020 and 2021, Aldarawsheh applied for loans on behalf of two businesses: Nahar Enterprises Inc., which he claimed was a trucking and freight company based in San Bernardino, and Ameral, an automotive repair business. Investigators later discovered that neither of these companies had any real operations or employees.
Prosecutors allege that Aldarawsheh knowingly misappropriated the funds, pointing to a transfer of almost $150,000 to a bank account controlled by him in December 2020. If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in federal prison.
Aldarawsheh was released on a $30,000 bond. Officials from U.S. Customs and Border Protection have not commented on his employment status following the arrest.
The Small Business Administration has estimated that over $200 billion in potentially fraudulent funds were distributed through its COVID-19 relief programs, as they rushed to provide aid during the pandemic. This case highlights ongoing concerns about fraud in these programs, which were designed to support small businesses struggling during a challenging time.