Maple Grove Man Started Fake Company To Get CARES Act Money: Feds

MAPLE GROVE, MN — A Maple Grove man is accused of fraudulently obtaining $562,500 from the Paycheck Protection Program, an initiative in the U.S. CARES Act that aimed to help businesses amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Aditya R. Sharma, 47, faces one count of wire fraud. He made his initial court appearance Monday.

According to federal authorities, Sharma started a fake company so he could qualify for PPP payments. In the application for federal aid, Sharma said he owned a company — called "Crosscode dba Kloudgaze" — which had been in operation since Feb. 15.

According to investigators, Sharma did not create Kloudgaze until after he submitted the application in April. He started Kloudgaze in May, authorities said.

Sharma said the company had approximately 29 employees on its payroll, authorities said. However, records from the state of Minnesota show that Sharma paid no wages to any Kloudgaze employee, authorities said.

In the application, Sharma included fabricated bank statements, according to investigators.

Sharma was given $562,500 in PPP funds and used it to personally enrich himself, authorities said. He transferred about $500,000 to a personal bank account, made a $5,000 down payment toward the installation of a $64,300 pool at his home, and put about $14,000 in a financial account in India, authorities said.

Sharma was arrested Friday and made his initial appearance at the U.S. District Court in St. Paul on Monday.