MIAMI, Fla. (CBS12) — A South Florida CEO was sentenced to five years in prison Thursday for orchestrating the largest fraud in FCC history, stealing over $100 million from federal programs intended to support vulnerable communities.
According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), Q Link CEO Issa Asad of Southwest Ranches is accused of defrauding a celebrated federal program that’s designed to provide discounted phone service to people in need for nearly a decade.
Q Link and Asad admitted to conspiring to defraud the Lifeline program from at least 2012 to 2021.
Under Asad’s direction, Q Link submitted false reimbursement claims, kept funds it wasn’t entitled to, misrepresented customer information, and misled the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) about complying with program rules.
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Q Link would use automated calls with false statements to keep customers using their services and tell customers with non-working cellphones not to throw the phone away, but to use it once every 30 days.
However, that wasn’t his only scheme; he also defrauded a separate federal program designed to aid individuals and businesses negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Asad, in Q Link’s name, executed a fraudulent scheme to obtain and keep Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) proceeds, and furthered the scheme by falsely claiming that Q Link’s Lifeline reimbursements substantially decreased because of the pandemic.
According to officials, $389,000 of those proceeds went towards a Land Rover payment, his Amex card, jewelry, and personal property taxes.
Asad was sentenced to 60 months in prison and charged with conspiring to commit wire fraud and money laundering. Q Link Wireless was also charged with conspiring to commit wire fraud. Together, Asad and Q Link paid more than $109.6 million in restitution to the FCC.
Separately, the DOJ stated that Asad paid over $1.75 million to the Small Business Administration and forfeited an additional $17.5 million.
In total, Asad and his former employer paid more than $128 million in penalties and restitution, making it the largest criminal matter involving the FCC and the largest criminal plea deal in the history of the Southern District of Florida.
According to U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Hayden P. O’Byrne, Asad’s actions diverted hundreds of millions of dollars for personal gain and impeded the government’s ability to provide aid to those who genuinely needed it.
“These outcomes underscore our resolve to make sure that those who mastermind corporate fraud schemes face personal consequences,” said O’Byrne.
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