(Ken Silva, Headline USA) A former DC Homeland Security official, who now works for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, has pled guilty to one count of bank fraud—a charge stemming from her perpetrating an $880,000 fraud on the COVID-era Paycheck Protection Program.
The DOJ announced the plea from Wendy Nicole Villatoro, 40, formerly of Washington, D.C., on Thursday.
According to the DOJ, from March 2020 to April 2021, Villatoro submitted eight PPP loan applications with various financial institutions, and 15 Economic Injury Disaster loans with the Small Business Administration—all of which contained materially false statements.
This is the LinkedIn account of the ex-Homeland Security official — and current Ag. Dept. employee— who pled guilty yesterday to stealing $880K from the COVID PPP scheme.
She says she's a "disruptor" (I'll say!) working on her PhD in cybersecurity. Connect with her if you’re… pic.twitter.com/nk2mBUiBjy— Ken Silva (@JD_Cashless) November 15, 2024
The DOJ said Villatoro submitted loans on behalf of fake businesses and inflated the number of employees, the average monthly payroll, the gross yearly revenue, or the cost of goods sold.
“In doing so, the DOJ said she tried to steal between $2.6 million and $5.5 million,” the DOJ said in a press release.
“While most of Villatoro’s loan applications were denied, she successfully secured over $844,000 in PPP and EID funds. Villatoro used the funds to pay off her student loans, pay off the car loan on a BMW SUV, and buy luxury items,” the DOJ said.
As part of her plea deal, Villatoro has agreed to pay $844,415.24 in restitution to the U.S. government, and to forfeit items purchased with proceeds of the offense—including over 70 pieces of designer clothing and jewelry and a BMW SUV.
She faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison. Her sentencing hearing is set for Feb. 25.
But meanwhile, she’s still apparently still collecting paychecks from the government. The DOJ’s Thursday press release specifically says she’s a “current employee with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.”
Before that, she was a D.C. Homeland Security Commissioner. According to a LinkedIn account with her name, she was a “senior expert publicly confirmed as Commissioner by the District of Columbia City Council to provide recommendations to the Mayor on improvements in security preparedness.”
She also said she’s a Doctoral Candidate in cybersecurity.
“I am a disruptor with expertise in sustainability, strategy, program management, logistics, homeland security, disaster management, and technology,” her LinkedIn bio states.
Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/jd_cashless.
