Special to IFN
CHARLOTTE – A Mooresville man pleaded guilty on Thursday to federal securities fraud and wire fraud charges for orchestrating a multimillion-dollar investment fraud scheme and fraudulently obtaining more than $2.6 million in COVID-19 relief funds.
Steven Andiloro, 53, entered the guilty plea in U.S. District Court, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina Dena J. King announced.
According to the plea agreement and court documents in the case, from 2018 to 2021, Andiloro operated an investment fraud scheme and induced victims to invest money in businesses that were both real and fictitious by making false representations about where and how the money would be invested.
For example, some of Andiloro’s victims were told their money would be invested into his car service business. Other victims believed their money would be invested into a non-existent marijuana dispensary business. Contrary to representations made to victims, Andiloro did not invest the money as promised. Instead, Andiloro used the funds to pay for personal expenses and to make Ponzi-style payments to other investors.
In addition to the investment scheme, Andiloro also engaged in COVID-19 fraud. Court records show that, from April 2020 to March 2021, Andiloro obtained funds from the Paycheck Protection Program by submitting fraudulent applications for disaster relief loans intended for businesses that suffered economic hardship due to the pandemic. To obtain the PPP funds, Andiloro submitted applications that contained false financial information about his businesses, including fake employment data and inflated revenues, costs, and payroll expenses. Andiloro received more than $2.6 million in disaster relief funds, which he used to fund his personal lifestyle and to make payments in furtherance of the investment fraud scheme.
Andiloro was released on bond. The securities fraud and the wire fraud offense each carry a maximum prison sentence of 20 years. A sentencing date has not been set.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney King thanked the U.S. Secret Service, the FBI, and the SBA-OIG for the investigation which led to the charges.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Graham Billings and Katherine Armstrong with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte are prosecuting the case.