Florida man accused of using coronavirus relief funds to buy £245,000 Lamborghini sports car

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  • July 28, 2020
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A 29-year-old man from Florida has been charged with fraud after he allegedly used coronavirus relief funds to buy an expensive sports car.

David T Hines, of Miami, was charged with fraudulently obtaining $3.9 million (£3 million) in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans to buy luxury items.

Mr Hines allegedly applied for $13.5 million in PPP loans by claiming he had hundreds of employees across four companies, Unified Relocation Solutions, Promaster Movers, Cash-in Holdings LLC and We pack Moving LLC.

Three of his loans were approved which provided Mr Hines with around $3.9 million of PPP funds.

Within days of receiving the money, Mr Hines is accused of using the PPP funds to buy a 2020 Lamborghini Huracan sports car costing an estimated $318,000 (£245,000).

He registered the car jointly in his name and the name of one of his companies.

Instead of using the rest of the relief money to make payroll payments as Mr Hines said he intended to on his loan application, the 29-year-old allegedly spent the funds at luxury retailers and resorts in Miami Beach.

The largest payment noted in the complaint is for $3,000.

Mr Hines was arrested on July 27 and appeared in Miami federal court charged with one count of bank fraud, one count of making false statements to a financial institution and one count of engaging in transactions in unlawful proceedings.

At the time of his arrest, authorities seized the Lamborghini and $3.4 million from his bank accounts.

Mr Hines arraignment is scheduled for October 14.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act came into force on March 29 and was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The PPP is one source of relief provided to Americans by the CARES Act. In April 2020, Congress authorised more than $300 billion in additional PPP funding.