LA Fraudster Stole Coronavirus Relief Funds For Vegas Trip: Feds

LOS ANGELES, CA — It took just two days of gambling Andrew Marnell to blow through $150,000 in Las Vegas' Bellagio casino. But according to federal investigators, the loss was a pittance — at least, when compared to the nearly $9 million which the Beverly Grove resident is alleged to have fraudulently obtained from federal coronavirus relief funds.

In a 30-page complaint unsealed Thursday, federal investigators cited bank records and financial transactions to connect millions in federal loans that should never have gone Marnell. The 40-year-old is accused of using a web of identities and shell companies to bilk millions from the funds intended to help businesses keep workers employed during the pandemic.

Starting in April, Marnell applied for millions of dollars in loans from in Paycheck Protection Program, a part of the federal CARES act intended to disburse forgivable loans to help businesses make their payroll obligations without laying off workers.

At first, when loans didn't flow to the businesses, but to Marnell, the financial institutions alerted federal investigators.

By tracking the names and social security numbers behind the loans, investigators found that Marnell had submitted applications for multiple fake businesses, which in turn accounted for hundred of fake jobs and millions in non-existent payroll expenses.

During his weekend trip to Vegas alone, investigators said Marnell lost $150,000 that that had been withdrawn from the PPP loan account. A surveillance photo provided by the U.S. Attorney's office, dated July 11, shows a masked Marnell sitting at a blackjack table.

But wasn't just the casino where Marnell did his gambling: He opened a brokerage account, "which lost more than $500,000 in May 2020 alone," the complaint notes.

In 2018, Marnell was fired from a credit analyst position with Wells Fargo, investigators found, "for embezzling money from the company (through a company credit card) related to gambling activity."

If convicted of bank fraud, Marnell faces up to 30 years in federal prison.