A Santa Clara woman has received an 18-month prison sentence for pocketing over $2.8 million in fraudulent pandemic relief loans, pointing to a troubling pattern of abuse within aid programs intended to help businesses weather the economic storms of COVID-19. Per a statement obtained by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California, Cassie Will-Darnall, 53, admitted to her role in the swindle, pleading guilty to bank and wire fraud charges earlier this year.
According to court documents, Will-Darnall lied about employee counts and payroll for two businesses, acquiring substantial loans from two lenders under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). She claimed Alternative Health Services Inc. had a monthly payroll of $387,595.67 for 10 employees, securing a loan of $968,989 from Lender 1, when, in reality, the company had neither. Under similar pretenses, Lender 2 disbursed $1,864,565 to Rosswood Properties LLC, expecting it to support a 35-person workforce with an $816,551 payroll – an outright fabrication.
The scheme leveraged the financial lifelines extended by the PPP, a relief initiative established by the CARES Act of 2020 to aid small business owners during the pandemic. Crafted to be a saving grace, these funds were vulnerable to an intricate deceit from those like Will-Darnall, who exploited the system intended to preserve jobs and businesses.
In addition to her prison term, which was decided by U.S. District Judge P. Casey Pitts, Will-Darnall is facing a three-year period of supervised release, with her sentence starting January 7, 2026. The judge has also scheduled a hearing for forfeiture on Oct. 14, and another for restitution on December 3. In layman's terms, it sounds like justice is pursuing any ill-gotten gains for recovery to the full extent.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys, including Sarah E. Griswold and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Johnny E. James Jr., led the charge on the case, with much-needed support from staff and investigation prowess courtesy of the FBI and SBA Office of Inspector General (OIG).
