A Bergen County man and former restauranteur confessed to fraudulently obtaining about $150,000 in COVID-19 relief funds and then using the money on Versace, Valentino and trips to Las Vegas, U.S. District Attorney Philp R. Sellinger announced Friday.
George Leguen, 51, of Paramus pleaded guilty on June 12 in Newark federal court to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering.
Prosecutors alleged Leguen participated in a scheme to illegally obtain Economic Injury Disaster Loans offered by the Small Business Administration between August 2020 and January 2021.
Leguen was accused of submitting fraudulent information in support of applications for relief funds, including falsely reporting the number of employees, annual gross revenue and phony federal tax returns, authorities said.
According to the complaint filed in federal court, Leguen and his partners operated the One Fifty One Restaurant in New York City at 151 Dyckman Street until around June 2019. Prosecutors said in court documents that Leguen applied for disaster relief funding under GJEG LLC, which was believed to be the same company as the restaurant, according to court documents.
Leguen claimed GJEG’s gross revenues in the 12-month period prior to the pandemic to be $1.38 million with the cost of goods sold totaling $757,000 and rental loses due to the pandemic totaling $70,000, court documents show.
But prosecutors said the One Fifty One Restaurant ceased operating prior to February 2020 based on documents showing the New York Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control revoked the restaurant’s license in 2019 due to various violations, according to the complaint filed in federal court in March 2021. Prosecutors also said the Internal Revenue Service had no tax records for GJEG, including in 2019.
Leguen received $149,900 in relief funds as a result of the false information submitted on the application. He then used the money for his personal gain, including a gondola ride at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas and designer retail purchases including Valentino, Versace and Gucci, according to court documents in the case. Authorities said Leguen also spent the money on airfare and restaurants.
Court documents show Leguen attempted to obtain two more disaster relief loans in September 2020, but was denied.
An attorney for Leguen did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday night.
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Matthew Enuco may be reached at Menuco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Matt on X
