Guilty Plea By Arlington CEO For Defrauding $2M From 8 Companies

ALEXANDRIA, VA — Kiel Brendan Brandt, 34, owner and CEO of the mergers and acquisitions firm Epsilon Acquisition Services, pleaded guilty in federal court on Wednesday to defrauding eight companies of more that $2 million, according to the U.S. Justice Department of Justice.

From at least February 2021 through December 2022, Brandt provided false information to companies and individuals about the status of their deals and his company’s finances. He admitted to falsely claiming that Epsilon would refund fees if the deals didn’t close, according to court records. He also admitted lying about if or when those refunds would be issued.

“When Brandt failed to secure funding and deals did not close, Brandt falsely claimed that the deals were delayed because the lenders and/or partners needed additional due diligence materials, insurance records, or other documentation,” according to court records.

One of Brandt’s customers was a company in Argentina that had paid Epsilon about $275,000 in refundable payments and fees to identify a buyer to purchase the company, court records say. Brandt never repaid the fees, saying that the bank was experiencing processing issuew or funds were delayed because of a holiday.

“To make his supposed efforts appear legitimate, Brandt initiated a transfer from his bank and obtained a confirmation order, but he then canceled the transfer before any of the money was sent from his account. Brandt, nonetheless, sent the confirmation number to the company,” according to court documents.

Brandt repaid only $193,323 of the $2,002,750 he defrauded from the eight companies. As part of his plea deal, he agreed to pay a total of $1,984,426 in restitution, according to court records.

On April 3, 2025, Brandt will return to court for sentencing, when faces up to 20 years in prison.