By Ryan Rudd 
In a dramatic courtroom resolution that underscores the ongoing challenges of maintaining fiscal accountability during a global crisis, a federal jury in San Diego has convicted Leronce Suel, owner of several ventures in the bustling San Diego restaurant scene. Suel’s fraudulent actions have illuminated the darker side of the altruistic COVID-19 relief efforts designed to help struggling businesses during the pandemic.
Suel’s business empire, comprising Rockstar Dough LLC and Chicken Feed LLC, both included popular eateries such as Streetcar Merchants, was marked by deceitful practices that exploited temporary lifelines extended by the government. The legitimacy of Suel’s operations began to crumble as evidence revealed that he had conspired to underreport over $1.7 million in the businesses’ income on tax returns and relief program applications.
Despite the benevolent intention of the Paycheck Protection Program loans and the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, designed to mitigate economic harm stemming from COVID-19, these funds were illicitly siphoned off by Suel and his associates. The misappropriation of $1.77 million earmarked for business sustenance raises pivotal questions about the effectiveness and oversight of the relief programs.
Taking his fraudulent schemes a step further, Suel orchestrated substantial cash withdrawals, relocated assets including purchasing property in Arkansas, and stashed over $2.4 million in cash within his residence. This operation, meticulously masked with false tax reports spanning multiple years and numerous fake depreciable assets, signifies a blatant abuse of the very system constructed to support communal recovery efforts.
Further corroding the financial integrity was Suel’s failure to file timely tax returns for 2018 and 2019. The extensions of these fraudulent activities continued into 2023, with the possession of manipulated personal returns claiming unwarranted business losses. Accumulating a tax liability of nearly $1.3 million, Suel’s actions highlight the critical need for vigilance in taxation and relief fund disbursements.
Following these poignant convictions, which include wire fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud, tax evasion, and more, Suel has consented to the forfeiture of approximately $1.47 million in misappropriated assets. Foreseen sentencing will further delve into the repercussions Suel faces, reinforcing the magnitude of systemic abuse he engaged in.
The unfolding of this case not only delineates consequences for tax and relief fraud but also serves as a stark reminder of the necessity for ethical conduct in using governmental support, designed to mitigate the pandemic’s economic challenges.