Collin County Dentist Sentenced for COVID-19 Relief Related Fraud

PLANO, Texas – A Plano dentist has been sentenced to federal prison for COVID-19 relief related violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Damien M. Diggs today.

Brian Bui, 43, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Sean D. Jordan.

According to court documents, Bui used his dentistry business to obtain at least two Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans by submitting materially false application paperwork, including fabricating supporting documentation and lying about the number of employees and monthly payroll expenses.  As a result of his conduct, he obtained approximately $1.89 million in forgivable loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.  Bui used the funds in a manner not authorized by the program, including for non-business, personal investments.  Bui was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,491,305.97.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anand Varadarajan.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

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