GLITZ AND GLAMOR

Virginia Fraudster Used COVID-19 Relief Money to Buy Ritzy Mansion, Feds Say

He was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison for fraud.

A Virginia businessman has been sentenced to nearly three years in the slammer for scamming his way into $1.6 million in federal COVID-19 relief funds, prosecutors say. Foad Darakhshan, 47, was sentenced to 33 months Friday for his role in a scheme that involved at least 63 bogus loan applications, the Department of Justice said. He used over $600,000 to co-own a $4.5 million mansion with its own movie theater and cigar room, The Washington Post reported, citing court documents. Other money was spent at Costco and gas stations, prosecutors said. Along with his girlfriend and four brothers, Darakhshan went to two banks before the fake tax documents were accepted. During the trial, his attorney argued that Darakhshan’s girlfriend coordinated the scheme. At his sentencing hearing Friday, Darakhshan expressed remorse. “What I did was wrong, and there’s no excuse,” he said. “I was raised better.”