NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Officials arraigned a man for allegedly stealing thousands of dollars in COVID-19 relief funds, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Friday.
Humayun Kabir, 53, was charged Thursday night with grand larceny, three counts of criminal possession of stolen property, two counts of grand larceny and three counts of falsifying business records.
Kabi, of Jamaica, allegedly applied for a federal Payroll Protection Program loan and an Economic Injury Disaster loan, certifying that he needed the funds due to economic harm he suffered as a driver for Uber and Lyft.
The money was then used to purchase residential properties in Niagara Falls, authorities allege.
According to the investigation, Kabir submitted an application to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) in June 2020 for the COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan, stating that he worked in the transportation industry. He was approved for a loan of $50,100, receiving the funds to his personal account via electronic deposit, prosecutors allege.
In March 2021, Kabir submitted an application to the SBA for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan claiming that he was experiencing hardship due to loss of work as an Uber driver. He was approved for a loan totaling $20,833 and withdrew the funds in cash through three separate transactions at his local bank branch in Queens.
In May 2021, Kabir submitted an application to the SBA for an additional PPP loan and was approved for a loan in the amount of $20,833 which was deposited into his personal account.
In August 2021, the principal of Kabir’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan was increased by $155,200, from $50,100 provided in June 2020 to $205,300.
For each of the loans provided, Kabir certified that the funds would be used solely to alleviate economic injury sustained during a declared disaster and support the business operations of the applicant, D.A. Katz alleges.
The New York State Department of Financial Services (NYS DFS) launched an investigation into the defendant’s loan disbursement on March 2023 while acting on a tip from a fraud monitoring service.
An extensive review of bank records showed that Kabir allegedly transferred $246,966 in loan funds he received from SBA to purchase three residential properties in Niagara Falls.
Upon learning of the charges pending against him, Kabir surrendered to the 103rd police precinct on Thursday.
Kabir faces a potential maximum sentence of up to 15 years in prison if convicted. He is set to return to court on Jan. 16, 2025.
"The COVID-19 pandemic inflicted profound challenges on millions of workers and small business owners who were unable to sustain their livelihoods," D.A. Katz said. "The defendant is accused of exploiting essential lifeline programs provided by our federal government for his own personal gain. My office will aggressively prosecute people who defraud our public service programs,"