Couple flees US after stealing millions of aid to pandemic companies

Richard Ayvazyan and his wife, Marietta Terabelian, were facing house arrest for their role in a massive fraud scheme involving a bailout given to US companies during the Covid-19 pandemic. The couple cut their electronic tracking bracelets and fled their California home, abandoning their three teenage children.

They left a typed note for the 13, 15 and 16 year olds.

“We will be together again one day,” he said, according to Ayvazyan’s lawyer. “This is not goodbye, but a brief break between us.”

This happened in late August. Almost three months later – and five months after their convictions in June – the couple has still not been found. The FBI is looking for them.

That didn’t stop a judge this week from sentencing Ayvazyan, 43, and Terabelian, 37, in absentia to 17 and six years in prison, respectively. Prosecutors said the couple and others carried out a scheme to steal more than $20 million in aid funds earmarked for American small businesses during the pandemic.

“The defendants used the Covid-19 crisis to steal millions of dollars in much-needed government aid to individuals and businesses suffering the economic effects of the worst pandemic in a century,” said US Attorney Tracy L. Wilkison.

Stolen money fueled a luxurious lifestyle

The couple and Ayvazyan’s brother, Artur Ayvazyan, 41, were found guilty of conspiring to commit bank fraud, electronic fraud and money laundering in a trial held in June. Richard Ayvazyan and his brother were also convicted of aggravated identity theft.

According to court documents and evidence presented at the trial, they used false or stolen identities – including the names of dead people and exchange students who visited the United States a few years ago – to submit fraudulent applications for approximately 150 federal loans for relief during the pandemic for shell companies in the São Fernando Valley.

The couple – along with Ayvazyan’s brother and five other conspirators – used the money to buy mansions in three Southern California cities – Tarzana, Glendale and Palm Desert – along with gold coins, diamonds, furniture, luxury watches and a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, prosecutors said.

When they were convicted, the three homes and luxury items were confiscated, along with bank accounts and approximately $450,000 in cash.

“When our country was at the height of vulnerability, these individuals were just thinking about lining their own pockets,” said Ryan L. Korner, a special agent with the Criminal Investigation Office of the IRS, the federal government’s tax service.

It is unclear whether Richard Ayvazyan planned the scheme, but of the eight people convicted so far, he has been sentenced with the longest sentence – 17 years. No one else has been sentenced to more than six years. His brother, Artur Ayvazyan, got five years.

In Monday’s ruling, US District Judge Stephen V. Wilson called Richard Ayvazyan “an endemic, cold-hearted fraudster with no regard for the law” and someone who “views fraud as an achievement.”

The couple’s three children were in court to witness the conviction of their parents and uncle.

Ayvazyan’s lawyer says there is more to this story.

The whereabouts of Richard Ayvazyan and Marietta Terabelian remain unknown. The FBI is offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to arrest.

Ashwin J. Ram, attorney for Ayvazyan, said prosecutors painted an exaggerated picture of his client’s involvement.

“It should be noted that the government has repeatedly viewed this as an $18 million or $20 million case, depending on the day and who was speaking,” Ram told CNN. “At the sentencing hearing, however, the court concluded that Richard Ayvazyan is only responsible for a loss in the order of $1.5 million. This is a far cry from the government’s theory of the case.”

Ram said he has not spoken to Ayvazyan since he fled in August. He believes that if his client were in court, he would have explained his side of the story.

“It was a shame that Mr. Ayvazyan was not present to complete the picture for the court,” he said. “It would have clarified his background and experience, including his role as community leader, angel investor, father and husband.”

The children’s tutors wanted to send them to Armenia

The couple’s three children are in the care of their grandparents and a court-appointed guardian, Ram said.

He said his caregivers recently filed an emergency passport application to travel to Armenia, where they have relatives.

Those responsible had hoped to send the children to Armenia to avoid the media circus surrounding their parents’ sentence, but the passports were not approved, he said.

Ram also said he opposed the court ruling on Richard Ayvazyan and Terabelian in absentia, adding that he wanted the hearing to be adjourned until when and if they resurfaced.

Five other Southern California residents, including Artur Ayvazyan’s wife, pleaded guilty to multiple charges in the case. Four of them were sentenced to sentences ranging from parole to six years in prison.

Artur Ayvazyan’s wife is expected to be sentenced on Dec. 6, but the judge has yet to rule on a motion to withdraw her guilty plea.

* (Translated material. Read the original in English here).