The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has reached a $2.65 million settlement against four real estate companies and their three owners to resolve allegations they allegedly submitted false claims for federally funded loans under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) during the pandemic.
Carnegie Homes & Construction LLC and Signature Collection Inc. (also operating as Fifty Seventh & 7TH Luxury Homes) design and build high-end residential luxury homes. Ram Gupta and Arpan Gupta own Carnegie and Signature, respectively. The Everstone Group provides consulting and construction services. Sapna Patel is the director and sole member of Everstone and also owns The Mosaic Group LLC.
According to the allegations, the Guptas and Patel applied for and received PPP loans by falsely reporting payroll costs, misrepresenting the number of employees they employed and falsifying the purpose of the loans. This resulted in the submission of alleged ineligible and improper claims for payment. In addition, they allegedly submitted false information to justify loan forgiveness.
The civil settlement resolves claims brought under the False Claims Act following a whistleblower lawsuit a Houston-area realtor filed in October 2021. The DOJ noted there has been no determination of liability against the parties in the settlement.
“Those who misuse federal programs to falsely obtain public funds are stealing from the American people,” said announced US Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei. “This settlement reflects our commitment to recovering ill-gotten gains and vindicating the interests of the taxpayer.”
