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September 23, 2021

Philly Con Man Faces Jail in $2 Million PPE Fraud

Guaravjit Singh promised PPE, but when he got victims’ money, he spent it on online gaming and other personal expenses.

By  Christopher Ruvo

He promised that he could deliver PPE at a time during the COVID-19 pandemic when supplies were desperately short.

Instead, he pocketed more than $2 million from unsuspecting victims and spent the cash on online gaming and other personal expenditures.

justice scale and gavel

Now, 26-year-old Philadelphia con man Guaravjit Singh is facing up to 20 years in prison for his scheming after pleading guilty to wire fraud in the U.S. District Court of New Jersey.

“The goal of the scheme was for Singh to enrich himself in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic by fraudulently inducing the victims to send him over $2 million to obtain personal protective equipment and then stealing the money and not providing the PPE to the victims as promised,” prosecutors wrote in court documents.

Singh’s case highlights the rampant fraud attempts that have plagued would-be PPE buyers during the COVID-19 pandemic. With the delta variant driving a surge in cases and deaths in the U.S., demand for PPE has risen again in the promotional products industry. It’s pivotal that distributors and suppliers order PPE only from viable, well-vetted sources to avoid getting scammed, industry leaders have said.

Overall, Singh convinced 10 victims to send him money. Authorities said he entered into agreements in which he would have ultimately been paid $7.1 million in exchange for providing approximately 1.5 million medical gowns, which were bound for end-use by the City of New York. The scheme began in spring 2020, when New York was the epicenter for virus case counts and deaths in the U.S.

Victims initially wired Singh’s purported company, GJS Solutions LLC, $712,500 as a 10% deposit.

“After receiving these funds from the victims, Singh made additional misrepresentations and excuses to the victims, ensuring them that they would receive the medical gowns,” federal authorities said in a statement. “Instead of purchasing and delivering medical gowns, Singh used the funds for personal expenses, including transferring funds to his brokerage account.”

In addition to prison time, Singh faces a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss of his offense, whichever is higher. Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 10, 2022.