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Richard Ayvazyan was convicted of pandemic fraud. He was out on bond, awaiting sentencing. Seventeen years was coming. His wife Marietta Terabelian faced six years. So on August 29, 2021, they cut their GPS ankle monitors and vanished.
They flew to Montenegro. They bought property there. They thought Eastern Europe would protect them. They lived as fugitives for over a year.
Welcome to Spodek Law Group. Our goal is to explain what actually happens when you try to run from federal PPP fraud charges in Los Angeles. Here’s what happened to the Ayvazyan family: the U.S. Marshals tracked them down. Montenegro extradited them. They’re now serving every day of those sentences – plus whatever additional time for fleeing adds. Another defendant in their ring, Tamara Dadyan, also fled to Montenegro to join them in January 2022. She was also extradited. The lesson from LA’s biggest PPP fraud case is simple: there is nowhere to run. The statute runs for 10 years. Extradition treaties cover the world. Cutting your ankle monitor just adds to your sentence.
Running doesn’t work. Running never works.
The Ayvazyan fraud ring stole over $20 million through approximately 150 fraudulent PPP loan applications. They used identities stolen from elderly people, deceased individuals, and foreign exchange students who had briefly visited America years ago. They obtained the loans, then spent the money on luxury homes in Tarzana, Glendale, and Palm Desert. Gold coins. Diamonds. Jewelry. Luxury watches.
Seven members of the ring were sentenced. Richard Ayvazyan got 17 years. His wife got 6 years. His brother Artur got 5 years. Manuk Grigoryan from Sun Valley got 6 years.
Heres the paradox that should terrify every PPP defendant in Los Angeles. The Ayvazyans were already convicted. There case was over. They knew exactly how much time they were facing. And they STILL thought running was a better option then serving the sentence.
They were wrong. The Marshals Service has a Fugitive Investigative Strike Team. There international division coordinates with foreign law enforcement. Montenegro might seem far away – but its not outside the reach of the federal government.
Tamara Dadyan fled to join them in Montenegro five months after they did. She was 51 months (over four years). All three were extradited. All three are now serving there sentences in American federal prisons.
If your considering whether to flee a PPP fraud case in Los Angeles, consider this: the Ayvazyans had over $20 million in fraud proceeds, a year head start, and property in Eastern Europe. It wasnt enough. Nothing you have is enough.
Hassan Kanyike of Santa Clarita was 29 years old when he was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport on December 20, 2020. He was about to board a flight to Dubai.
He had already transferred $762,000 to Uganda – his country of citizenship. The pandemic relief money meant to keep American workers employed was funding an escape to the Middle East and a life overseas.
He never made that flight.
Kanyike had obtained $1.8 million through six fraudulent PPP applications and two EIDL applications. He created sham companies to apply for the loans. The money was never used for payroll. It was routed out of the country as fast as it came in.
Heres the hidden connection most people miss. The airport isnt a gateway to freedom – its one of the most surveilled locations in America. Customs and Border Protection tracks every departure. Flight manifests are monitored. If your a subject of federal investigation, buying that one-way ticket might be the trigger that gets you arrested.
Kanyike pled guilty in December 2024. He’s facing years in federal prison. The Dubai lifestyle he imagined will happen in a federal facility instead.
Jasmine Mallard-McCarter of Eastvale didnt hide her PPP fraud. She ADVERTISED it.
On Instagram.
She marketed her services to people who wanted to steal from pandemic relief programs. She posted about her success. She attracted clients who wanted to participate in the fraud. The same social media platform that made her scheme profitable – attracting more then $1.7 million in fraudulent claims – created the evidence trail that convicted her.
The Instagram posts became prosecution exhibits. The DMs became witness statements. The platform that enabled the fraud documented the fraud.
In June 2025, Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong sentenced Mallard-McCarter to 84 months – seven full years in federal prison. Plus $1,765,407 in restitution.
Heres the irony nobody warned her about. Social media creates permanant records. Every post is timestamped. Every message is stored. Every transaction discussed in those DMs is evidence. The same tools that let her scale her fraud operation let prosecutors prove every element of the crime.
If your using social media to discuss PPP loans – even vaguely, even with friends, even in what you think are private messages – your creating the evidence that will convict you.
Mustafa Qadiri of Irvine used $5 million in PPP loans to buy a Ferrari, a Bentley, and a Lamborghini. When HSI agents arrested him, they seized all three vehicles. They also seized $2 million from his bank account.
Heres the inversion most defendants dont understand until its too late. The luxury lifestyle that was supposed to be the payoff for the fraud becomes the evidence that proves the fraud. Every car title documents the spending. Every registration proves you bought it during the pandemic. Every insurance payment shows ongoing use of fraudulent funds.
Qadiri faces 4 counts of bank fraud, 4 counts of wire fraud, 1 count of aggravated identity theft, and 6 counts of money laundering. The cars are gone. The bank account is frozen. The charges carry decades of potential prison time.
The PPP program was supposed to cover payroll. If your spending went to luxury vehicles instead of employee wages, that spending IS the evidence. You created the proof with every purchase.
Heres something most LA defendants dont realize. California is one of only THREE headquarters for the national COVID-19 Fraud Strike Force. The Central District of California (Los Angeles) and the Eastern District of California (Sacramento) jointly run one of the Strike Force teams – along with Miami and Baltimore.
That means Los Angeles has dedicated prosecutors whose entire job is pandemic fraud. Enhanced data analytics. Multi-agency coordination. Direct lines to IRS, SBA OIG, FBI, and HSI. This isnt overflow work for general crimes units. This is there entire focus.
The Strike Force approach means cases move faster. Investigations are more coordinated. Prosecutors specialize in the specific statutes and fraud patterns of pandemic relief programs. The same PPP fraud that might get lost in the shuffle somewhere else gets priority attention in LA.
Todd Spodek understands what it means to face a Strike Force prosecution. The resources are concentrated. The attention is focused. The outcomes are harsher. If your case is in the Central District of California, your facing the A-team of pandemic fraud enforcement.
Casie Hynes of Los Angeles submitted more then 80 fraudulent applications. She created approximately 20 fake companies. She caused $3.2 million in losses and received $2.3 million. Then she also tried to claim $1.3 million in pandemic tax credits.
Heres the consequence cascade that defines serious PPP fraud cases. The layering of fraud on top of fraud – PPP plus EIDL plus tax credits – turned what might have been one charge into multiple counts. Each fake company is a separate scheme. Each application is a separate act. Each program defrauded adds to the total.
Hynes got 60 months in February 2025. Five years.
Robert Benlevi of Encino went even bigger. He sought $27 million through 27 applications. He claimed 8 companies each had 100 employees and $400,000 in monthly payroll. The reality? Zero employees. Zero payroll. Not one person working at any company.
Benlevi got over 11 years.
The scale of fraud correlates directly with sentence length. One fraudulent application might get you probation or a short sentence. Eighty applications gets you five years. 150 applications gets you seventeen years. The system punishes systematic fraud exponentially, not linearly.
Vanessa Williams of Corona and Denise Mata of Moreno Valley were arrested in October 2024. There scheme involved more then 100 co-schemers and $3.5 million in fraudulent loans. The 23-count indictment named four defendants – but 100+ additional people were part of the operation.
This illustrates whats happening across Los Angeles County right now. Large-scale rings are being dismantled. Lower-level participants are being identified. Cooperators are naming names. The investigation dosent stop with the first arrest – it expands.
If your connected to PPP fraud in Los Angeles, you have three options:
Option one: Wait and hope. Maybe the investigators dont find you. Maybe the cooperators dont name you. Maybe the statute of limitations runs before they build the case. This is the worst option. The 10-year statute gives prosecutors plenty of time. The data analytics get better every year. Waiting just means getting arrested later when your options are worse.
Option two: Disclose voluntarily. Contact counsel. Evaluate wheather proactive disclosure makes sense. Sometimes getting ahead of the investigation produces better outcomes then waiting to be found. Not always – but sometimes.
Option three: Prepare your defense now. Even if you dont disclose, you can prepare. Gather documents. Understand your exposure. Know what your facing before the agents arrive. Preparation dosent guarantee anything – but its better then surprise.
Spodek Law Group has handled PPP fraud cases across the country. We understand the Central District’s approach. We’ve seen how Strike Force prosecutions develop. We know which options make sense in which situations.
The Central District of California is the LARGEST federal district in America. It covers Los Angeles County, Orange County, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo. More people live in this district then in most states.
The judges here have seen hundreds of PPP fraud cases. There not impressed by first-time offenders. There not moved by claims of pandemic desperation. The sentencing is 40% harsher in 2025 then it was in 2021. The excuse window has closed.
Call 212-300-5196 for a confidential consultation. We can evaluate your situation, assess your exposure, and provide honest guidance about your options.
Spodek Law Group understands that Los Angeles PPP fraud prosecutions are different from other districts. The Strike Force presence. The case volume. The judicial experience with pandemic fraud. All of it creates a prosecution environment that requires specialized knowledge.
We put this information on our website because most people searching for Los Angeles PPP fraud lawyers are discovering that running dosent work, that social media creates evidence, that luxury spending proves the crime, and that the Central District has dedicated resources for exactly these cases.
The Ayvazyans fled to Montenegro. Kanyike was grabbed at LAX. Mallard-McCarter documented her own fraud on Instagram. Qadiri’s cars became evidence. Every defendant who thought they could escape learned the same lesson.
You cant outrun federal charges. You can only prepare for them. The question is wheather youll prepare before the agents arrive or after.
Thats the only choice that actualy matters.
Very diligent, organized associates; got my case dismissed. Hard working attorneys who can put up with your anxiousness. I was accused of robbing a gemstone dealer. Definitely A law group that lays out all possible options and best alternative routes. Recommended for sure.
- ROBIN, GUN CHARGES ROBIN
NJ CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEYS