A Los Angeles rideshare driver has been arrested on federal charges after allegedly using more than $2 million in COVID-19 business relief loans to buy cryptocurrency, U.S. prosecutors announced.
Federal authorities say 34-year-old Bruce Choi of Koreatown was arrested Tuesday at San Francisco International Airport and charged with wire fraud and money laundering. According to the indictment, Choi applied for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) by posing as the CEO and owner of a company called “Premier Republic” — a shell the government says never conducted business or employed anyone. Prosecutors allege Choi obtained roughly $2 million in relief funds and then wired the proceeds to an account at crypto exchange Kraken.
As part of the investigation, authorities seized nearly 40 BTC and additional cryptocurrencies from accounts tied to the scheme. If convicted, Choi faces steep penalties: each wire fraud count carries up to 30 years behind bars, and the money-laundering charge carries up to 10 years.
The case underscores continued federal scrutiny of pandemic-relief fraud and the intersection with digital assets. The Small Business Administration and other agencies have worked with law enforcement to sift through millions of EIDL and other relief applications for potential fraud since the pandemic. Prosecutors have increasingly flagged illicit transfers into crypto as part of their investigations.
This is not an isolated example. In 2023 a TikTok influencer pleaded guilty to wire fraud after laundering roughly $1.2 million in relief proceeds through cryptocurrency, and last year a U.K. business owner received a two-year prison sentence after diverting more than $130,000 in loans — including transfers to “investment and crypto investment” firms.
Choi’s case will proceed in federal court as regulators and prosecutors continue to police attempts to divert emergency aid into the crypto sector.
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