Chula Vista City Councilmember Andrea Cardenas and her brother, Jesus Cardenas, have been charged with felony counts of conspiracy to commit a crime, money laundering, and other charges stemming from an alleged fraudulent loan for their political consulting business, the San Diego County District Attorney's Office announced Wednesday.
The complaint states that Jesus Cardenas, 40, misrepresented the number of employees, misrepresented what type of business it was, and said the PPP funds would go towards employee retention and payroll, when the funds were actually used for personal expenses. After receiving the loan, the complaint details several occasions in which the siblings allegedly used the loan funds to make credit card payments, payments to a Venmo account, and a $33,500 check to Andrea Cardenas' Chula Vista City Council campaign account.