A Pacific Beach man who pleaded guilty to committing fraud over misuse of COVID-19 funds got a long sentencing delay until Nov. 18.
Thomas H. Zolezzi, 61, operated a business known as Casamar Clean Oceans Inc. from his home address in Pacific Beach when he applied for three loans to cover payroll costs, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
Zolezzi has agreed to pay $700,884 back to the Small Business Administration and $2,238,910 to Capital Plus Financial, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
Zolezzi has waived his right for a speedy sentencing before U.S. District Court Judge Anthony Battaglia, who set it for Nov. 19. He remains free on $50,000 bond.
Court documents filed by his attorneys say he has a major family event in July and attorneys are out of the country in August. The prosecution did not object to the long sentencing delay.
He could receive a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison, but if he pays restitution back, he would likely get a reduced sentence.
Zolezzi pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in which he “knowingly transmitted” an application in interstate commerce for a Payroll Protection Program(PPP) loan on May 14, 2020.
The charge says he used the funds “to pay for his personal expenses instead of paying the salary of his employees.” The U.S. Attorney’s office said Zolezzi falsely overstated the number of his employees, the payroll amount, and his annual revenue to obtain the loans.
In his plea agreement, Zolezzi admitted he submitted five loan applications containing false statements to trick lenders into providing the relief funds, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, & Economic Security Act, known as the CARES Act, was enacted on March 27, 2020, to provide over $2 trillion of economic relief to workers, families, small businesses, industry sectors, and other levels of government that were hit hard by COVID-19. The CARES Act authorized the Small Business Administration to temporarily guarantee loans under a new loan program called the PPP.
Anyone with info about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at (866) 720-5721.
