Oakland Woman Sentenced In Million-Dollar Pandemic Relief Fraud That Funded Luxury Spending Spree

By CBS San Francisco Staff:

OAKLAND (CBS SF) — An Oakland woman who pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining pandemic relief funds and using the proceeds to fund a lavish spending spree, including high-end automobiles and private jet travel, was sentenced to three years in prison Thursday.

Christina Burden, 36, was originally charged on February 3, 2021 in a federal complaint alleging bank fraud in obtaining funds from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program (EIDL), using shell companies, according to a press statement from U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California Stephanie Hinds.

Burden pleaded guilty to two counts of bank fraud and two counts of money laundering. In her plea agreement, Burden admitted registering multiple fictitious businesses with the California Secretary of State, then providing fake documents on the business operations to qualify for PPP or EIDL loans.

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