LOS ANGELES
A San Fernando Valley man, who is a fugitive from justice, faces charges of fraudulently getting more than $860,000 from the Paycheck Protection Program, according to officials.
Arman Manukyan then transferred most of the money to his personal bank accounts, officials allege.
Manukyan, 49, of Panorama City, was charged with one count of bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft in a criminal complaint filed Monday in federal court.
According to an affidavit in support of the complaint, these are the facts and allegations:
Manukyan in June submitted two applications for PPP loans to Bank of America for $1.7 million on behalf of two shell companies registered in his name – Argo Global, Inc., and Express Wiring.
Manukyan allegedly claimed Argo Global was a sewing business with 73 employees and submitted to Bank of America, and later the Small Business Administration, false tax documents purporting to show wages and taxes for the company.
The underwriting packet also did not include a list of employees or associates for Argo Global, which listed a virtual office address in Beverly Hills as its place of business, according to the affidavit.
Ultimately, an $867,187 loan was approved for Argo Global, Inc.
Shortly after receiving the funds in Argo Global’s name, Manukyan allegedly transferred most of the balance to two of his personal bank accounts.
When a bank investigator contacted Manukyan after one of his accounts had been frozen because of suspicious activity, he allegedly told the bank he was going to use the PPP loan to start a limousine business, contradicting what he wrote on his loan application, the affidavit states.
In June, Manukyan also allegedly submitted to Bank of America a loan application of $884,748 for Express Wiring, a shell company with a Glendale address.
The Small Business Administration rejected the application, indicating it either had been submitted after the June 22 deadline for PPP loans or the allocated PPP funds had run out, according to the affidavit.
In July, a seizure warrant was executed on Manukyan’s bank accounts, recovering $866,019.
A search warrant executed at Manukyan’s home on July 22 revealed multiple debit cards used for unemployment benefits from the California Employment Development Department (EDD) that were in the names of different people, the affidavit states.
Manukyan allegedly told law enforcement that he found two of the EDD cards on the street and decided to keep them, but insisted that he never used them.
Investigators recovered another $118,474 from debit cards linked to Manukyan.
On August 9, law enforcement received information that Manukyan had boarded a flight from Mexico City inbound to Paris with a final destination of Minsk, Belarus, the affidavit states.
Manukyan is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
If convicted of both charges, Manukyan would face a statutory maximum sentence of 32 years in federal prison.