Political Consultant Jesus Cardenas Sentenced on Grand Theft Charges (San Diego County District Attorney, March 27, 2024)
Summary
A San Diego County District Attorney press release dated March 27, 2024 reports that political consultant Jesus Cardenas, 41, was sentenced to 45 days in work furlough, 135 days in home detention and two years formal probation for two felony counts of grand theft. Cardenas pleaded guilty to fraud involving the Paycheck Protection Program and the state Employment Development Department. In February 2021 Cardenas applied for a PPP loan for the consulting firm Grassroots Resources, listing 34 employees when 30 of them worked for Harbor Collective, a marijuana dispensary; the loan was approved for $176,227 and went to personal expenses, including $21,000 owed to American Express. Cardenas also received $26,700 in unemployment benefits in 2020 while the firm was operating. Restitution includes $176,227 to the Small Business Administration, joint and several with Andrea Cardenas.
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OFFICE OF
330 West Broadway DWAIN D. WOODLEY
San Diego, CA 92101 THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEY
(619) 531-4040
COUNTY OF SAN DIEGO
SanDiegoDA.com
SUMMER STEPHAN
DISTRICT ATTORNEY
March 27, 2024 Contact: Steve Walker (619) 843-7977
For Immediate Release Tanya Sierra (619) 531-3315
En Español Barbara Medina (619) 531-3305
Political Consultant Jesus Cardenas
Sentenced on Grand Theft Charges
Defendant Ordered to Pay More than $200,000 in Restitution
San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan said today that defendant Jesus Cardenas,
41, has been sentenced to 45 days in work furlough, 135 days in home detention and two years
formal probation for committing two felony counts of grand theft. Should he violate the terms of
his probation, Cardenas could be ordered to serve up to two years and eight months in custody.
Cardenas pleaded guilty to fraud related to funds obtained from the federal Paycheck Protection
Program and the state Employment Development Department. Cardenas acknowledged cheating
the U.S. government out of $176,000 in COVID-19 relief funds which he laundered and used to
pay for personal expenses. He also unlawfully applied for over $26,000 in unemployment
benefits.
As part of his probation, Superior Court Judge Rachel Cano ordered Cardenas must submit to
search and seizure, must operate any business legally and comply with all rules and regulations
of such business including being licensed, paying taxes, and comply with any campaign finance
laws. He must also pay back the full amount of the funds he stole including $176,227 to the
Small Business Administration joint and several with the co-defendant Andrea Cardenas,
$26,700 to the Employment Development Department, and an amount to be determined to the
Franchise Tax Board.
“Our dedicated prosecution team conducted a thorough investigation resulting in the service of
27 search warrants to examine financial and email accounts,” DA Stephan said. “They uncovered
and proved that Cardenas had engaged in multiple fraud schemes over several years. In these
types of cases, we often rely on the public, the media, or people who suspect wrongdoing to
report potential public integrity crimes to our office so we can investigate. Members of the
public, and members of local media outlets like La Prensa deserve recognition for their reporting,
which helped bring this case to light.”
Cardenas began operating a political consulting firm called Grassroots Resources in 2016. In
2019, Grassroots Resources began acting as a payroll service for one of their clients, Harbor
Collective, a marijuana dispensary. In early 2021, Grassroots Resources was being pressured to
pay off debts including money owed to TMC Direct, a political mailing company.
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In February 2021, Cardenas filed for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loan from the Small
Business Administration via PayPal. He misrepresented multiple items on the application,
including: that Grassroots had 34 employees, when in reality these 30 of these individuals
worked for Harbor Collective; that they were not engaged in activity illegal under federal law
(marijuana dispensaries are not legal under federal law); that they were not a business engaged in
political consulting; and that the loan funds would be used to cover payroll expenses. The loan
was approved for $176,227.
On May 3, 2021, the $176,227 of PPP loan funds were deposited into a Grassroots Business
account. Over the course of the next two weeks, the money was transferred between two
different Grassroots accounts. From there, Cardenas used the PPP funds to pay off multiple
personal expenses including $21,000 owed to American Express and he transferred $35,000 to
his sister’s personal Wells Fargo account where much of it was used to pay of campaign debt she
owed.
In a separate fraud scheme, in 2020, Cardenas unlawfully applied for unemployment benefits and
received $26,700 from the Employment Development Department. He misrepresented on
applications that he was not working and not receiving any income. However, his political
consulting business was fully operational during that election year, handling the campaigns of
multiple candidates and other entities.
This case was prosecuted by the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office Public Integrity
Unit. Team members included Deputy District Attorney Chandelle Boyce, Deputy District
Attorney Hector Jimenez, Deputy District Attorney Leon Schorr, District Attorney Investigator
James Hawksley, District Attorney Investigator Justin Bostic, and Forensic Accountant Kevin
Boyne. The investigation was also assisted by the Department of Homeland Security COVID
Fraud Unit.
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About the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office
The San Diego County DA’s Office prosecutes all felony crimes in the county and misdemeanor crimes
committed outside the City of San Diego. The office files about 40,000 criminal cases a year and balances
prosecution with numerous crime prevention programs. District Attorney Summer Stephan leads the
office of more than 1,000 dedicated employees who pursue fair and equal justice, and support victims
daily across San Diego County.
Follow the District Attorney’s Office on
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