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PULSE POINTS
❓WHAT HAPPENED: The founder of a nonprofit that provided LGBTQ+ services in Washington, D.C., was sentenced to 33 months in prison for diverting federal COVID-19 relief funds.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Ruby Corado, also known as Vladimir Orlando Artiga Corado, a transgender activist and founder of Casa Ruby, along with U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden and U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro.
📍WHEN & WHERE: Sentenced on Tuesday in Washington, D.C., following a guilty plea on July 17, 2024.
💬KEY QUOTE: “Instead of using the funds as promised, Corado stole over $950,000, transferred at least $150,000 to bank accounts in El Salvador, and hid it from the IRS,” said U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro.
🎯IMPACT: Corado was ordered to pay $956,215 in restitution to the Small Business Administration, with the nonprofit shutting down in 2022 amid allegations of financial mismanagement.
IN FULL
The founder of Casa Ruby, a now-defunct LGBTQ+ nonprofit in Washington, D.C., was sentenced to 33 months in prison and ordered to pay $956,215 in restitution for the fraudulent use of federal COVID-19 relief funds. Ruby Corado, also known as Vladimir Orlando Artiga Corado, pleaded guilty to wire fraud on July 17, 2024.
U.S. District Court Judge Trevor McFadden noted during the sentencing that Corado “found an opportunity to defraud U.S. Americans” instead of assisting them. Corado was also sentenced to two years of supervised release following imprisonment, unless deported by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Corado received over $1.3 million from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program for Casa Ruby. However, as U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro stated, “Instead of using the funds as promised, Corado stole over $950,000, transferred at least $150,000 to bank accounts in El Salvador, and hid it from the IRS.”
During the hearing, Corado claimed he was remorseful, saying, “I never intended to become a fugitive. I want to tell you how sorry I am.” Casa Ruby, which opened in 2012 and provided shelter and services to LGBTQ-identifying minors, expanded significantly over the years but closed in 2022 following allegations of fraud and financial mismanagement.
In 2022, Corado sold his Maryland home and fled to El Salvador after financial irregularities surfaced. He was arrested by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents on March 5, 2024, at a hotel in Laurel, Maryland, after returning to the U.S. unexpectedly. The stolen funds are to be repaid to the Small Business Administration (SBA).
The National Pulse reported last week that Corado, while admitting to the fraud, had asked to be spared prison time and deportation due to being transgender.
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