The legal challenges for a nonprofit accused by Orange County, California, of potentially misusing millions in COVID-19 relief funds intensified Aug. 22 after federal investigators executed search warrants on the homes of two of the organization’s executives.
Ciaran McEvoy, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, confirmed to The Epoch Times that agents conducted the searches but declined to provide further details, saying they were sealed by order of the court.
The Orange County Register reported the searches targeted the Garden Grove home of Peter Pham, the CEO of the nonprofit Viet America Society, and the Tustin home of Rhiannon Do—Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do’s 22-year-old daughter.
The nonprofit’s attorney, Mark Rosen, told the news outlet agents also searched Perfume River restaurant in Westminster, where the group received over $10 million in county contracts between 2020 to 2022, during the pandemic, to provide meals to the needy and elderly.
Rosen was not immediately available for comment.
Last week, the county sued the nonprofit and three of its members for allegedly misusing the funds.
In a lawsuit filed in Orange County Superior Court Aug. 15, the county alleged that three executives at the nonprofit and an executive of an associated organization misappropriated millions of dollars to purchase homes for themselves.
Viet America Society's office at 8907 Warner Avenue in Huntington Beach, Calif. (Google Earth/Screenshot via The Epoch Times)
The suit says five homes were purchased between August 2021 and May 2024, allegedly using the funding: two for Pham; one for Rhiannon Do, who served as an executive for the nonprofit; one for Dinh Mai, the nonprofit’s secretary; and another for Thu Thao Thi Vu, owner of Aloha Financial Investment, which was allegedly operating as Perfume River Restaurant & Lounge to prepare the meals for giving away.
However, Rosen, the nonprofit’s attorney told The Epoch Times in a previous interview that the lawsuit filing contained factual errors.
The suit alleges that Pham purchased a house in Buena Park with his wife in May 2023, but Rosen said that he was not then and is still not married.
“Peter Pham ... has never bought a house in Buena Park. So they must have looked up every Peter Pham in Orange County, and whatever that Peter Pham bought, that’s what they said my Peter Pham bought,” he said Aug. 19.
Earlier this month, the county requested the nonprofit return $2.2 million in funds by Aug. 26 due to insufficient documentation of spending. Rosen submitted a letter and audit Aug. 12 on behalf of the nonprofit refuting any misuse of funds, leading the county to file a lawsuit shortly after.
In addition to holding the defendants accountable for the alleged home purchases, the lawsuit aims to recover all the awarded funds unless the nonprofit can prove they were properly used.
Additionally, the county has filed claims under what’s known as the False Claims Act, which could require the nonprofit to pay three times the amount as a penalty.
Supervisor Do’s office declined to comment on the matter.
“The taxpayers of Orange County expected these funds to be used for helping people during a crisis, and for the individuals involved to have instead converted the funds for their personal benefit to enrich themselves is just unconscionable,” Supervisor Katrina Foley told The Epoch Times Aug. 19.
In letters requesting refunds, the county provided several examples showing the nonprofit’s failure to document how many participants it served during the program.
Rosen said record-keeping was challenging during the pandemic due to limited physical contact, which resulted in incomplete records. However, he said that all services promised in the county’s contract were provided.
“At the beginning, they weren’t able to keep as good records as they keep now, because it was during COVID, and they had drivers who delivered the meals ... [but] couldn’t go knocking on doors to get signatures, because everybody was afraid of COVID,” he said.
Foley, however, said the problem went beyond just collecting signatures from meal recipients. The nonprofit also failed to provide essential documentation, such as receipts, invoices, billing statements, and payroll records, she said.
She added that documenting spending should be a basic requirement for any organization, including new ones.
“I don’t accept that as an excuse for this nonprofit. Many less experienced organizations are managing to keep track of their records while serving the community,” she said.
Agencies involved in the search warrants include the FBI, IRS criminal investigation, and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
