A former Virginia state delegate was sentenced after being found guilty of fraudulently obtaining a COVID-19 relief loan. Ibraheem Samirah, 34, received three years of probation and ordered to pay $88,000 in restitution following his plea of guilt to wire fraud. According to court documents, the former lawmaker obtained an $83,000 Paycheck Protection Program loan in May 2020 for his dental practice in Fairfax County. He applied in August 2021 to have the loan forgiven, which required the PPP funds to be used for payroll, rent, or mortgage payments.
Samirah claimed the loan would be used to pay four workers at his practice, but court records revealed his business had no payroll employees and no active financial account to disburse payroll funds until a few days before applying for the loan. Prosecutors stated that Samirah allegedly fabricated payroll and tax records to secure the loan, with funds distributed through bank accounts belonging to the supposed employees and then transferred into his own account.
Samirah told the court he had a “mistaken understanding of the PPP loan process,” which he claimed was “weaponized by Donald Trump’s Justice Department.” He explained that he intended to use the cash to hire workers to market his business but changed his mind after realizing the pandemic would be prolonged, instead spending the money on dental equipment and office furnishings, which were not authorized uses of the funds.
