Santa Clara Woman Sentenced To 18 Months In Prison (SBA OIG)
Summary
An OIG news release published September 24, 2025 by the Office of Inspector General, reporting that Cassie Will-Darnall, of Santa Clara, was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge P. Casey Pitts for fraudulently obtaining more than $2.8 million in pandemic relief funds. It states that she pleaded guilty on Jan. 15, 2025 to one count of bank fraud and one count of wire fraud arising out of two Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, funded in the amounts of $968,989 and $1,864,565. The release also states a three-year period of supervised release, a forfeiture hearing set for Oct. 14, 2025, a restitution hearing set for Dec. 3, 2025, and a date of Jan. 7, 2026 to begin serving the sentence.
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“2025 09 24 Santa Clara Woman Sentenced To 18 Months In Prison For Fraudulently Obtaining More Than 2 8 Million.”
Original at legacy.sba.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2025-09-24-santa-clara-woman-sentenced-to-18-months-in-prison-for-frau-8de2b88bca/
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OIG news release Santa Clara Woman Sentenced To 18 Months In Prison For Fraudulently Obtaining More Than $2.8 Million In Pandemic Relief Funds Published on September 24, 2025 by Office of Inspector General Click Here to Sign Up for SBA OIG Email Updates on Recent Investigative Cases, Audit Oversight Reports, and General News Click Here to View the Original U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Press Release Cassie Will-Darnall was sentenced today to 18 months in federal prison for fraudulently obtaining more than $2.8 million in pandemic relief funds. U.S. District Judge P. Casey Pitts handed down the sentence. Will-Darnall, 53, of Santa Clara, pleaded guilty on Jan. 15, 2025, to one count of bank fraud and one count of wire fraud arising out of two Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans she obtained. The PPP was administered by the SBA as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, a federal law enacted in March 2020 to provide billions of dollars in emergency financial assistance to millions of Americans suffering from the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The PPP provided forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other qualified business expenses. PPP funds were disbursed by SBA-approved third-party lenders. In connection with pleading guilty, Will-Darnall admitted that in May 2020, she fraudulently submitted a PPP application to Lender 1 as the sole partner of Alternative Health Services Inc., falsely stating that the company had 10 employees and an average monthly payroll of $387,595.67, when it had no employees and no payroll. Based on the false information, Lender 1 approved and funded the PPP loan in the amount of $968,989. In July 2020, Will-Darnall submitted a PPP application to Lender 2 as the CEO of Rosswood Properties LLC, falsely stating that the company had 35 employees and an average monthly payroll of $816,551, when it had no employees and no payroll. Based on the false information, Lender 2 approved and funded the PPP loan in the amount of $1,864,565. United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian, FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge Matt Cobo, and SBA Office of Inspector General (OIG) Western Region Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Huang made the announcement. In addition to the prison term, Judge Pitts also sentenced the defendant to a three-year period of supervised release. Judge Pitts set a hearing on forfeiture on Oct. 14, 2025, and a hearing on restitution on Dec. 3, 2025. The defendant will begin serving the sentence on Jan. 7, 2026. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah E. Griswold and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Johnny E. James Jr. prosecuted the case with the assistance of Veronica Hernandez, Lynette Dixon, and Elise Etter. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI and SBA-OIG. Related programs: Pandemic Oversight, PPP
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