Ranjan Rajbanshi, DDS, recently pleaded guilty to stealing $500,000 in COVID-19 relief money.
Dr. Rajbanshi ran a dental practice in Bakersfield and Santa Barbara. From April 2020 through February 2022, he received more than $850,000 in COVID-19 relief money from the Small Business Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services, according to an Aug. 21 news release from the Justice Department.
Although he represented to the government that he would use the funds for business purposes, Dr. Rajbanshi used $500,000 of the money for personal expenses.
Dr. Rajbanshi agreed to pay that money back to the government before his sentencing. He is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 4.