Mandell declined to comment on Rendon’s businesses or the government’s exhibits, saying he has not yet obtained or reviewed discovery in the case. “I will speak in generalities and say this,” he says. “I have never seen a case where the government provides details and facts that are in favor of a defendant, especially at this early phase of a case. Further, the items that you mentioned are not necessarily relevant to the elements that the government must prove before a jury can find Ms.
Uribe believes Rendon was too wealthy to have scammed money from the government. She says Rendon earned her luxe lifestyle. “She works very hard and sold multimillion-dollar apartments, like when she used to sell Acqualina, which is a really high end development here on the beach. She sold the penthouse there. That is a $30 million penthouse. I mean, do people even know the commission for that? She has made over six figures on commission.
According to both people who knew her, Rendon had multiple side businesses in addition to her real estate work. She sold clothes, they claim, and Uribe says she also sold supplements on Amazon and worked for Monat, a multilevel marketing company where she had a team of women below her selling shampoo. On Instagram, Rendon had a highlight called “Monat,” and she posted about the products on Pinterest in 2021.
As for the allegations that she used some of the money on cosmetic procedures, Uribe says Rendon was not big into plastic surgery, at least not compared to her peers. “Daniela is beautiful. She goes to the gym all the time,” Uribe says. “We all have enhanced our breasts, maybe 20 years ago. I’ve seen women that have 20 surgeries. [Daniela] has the normal thing that girls do: little enhancements. Maybe you do filler or botox because we’re getting older. That’s just like, normal.
Covid-relief programs, designed to rush money to small businesses to keep them operating through the economically devastating pandemic lockdown, were plundered by fraudsters to a shocking extent. Experts have estimated that 10 percent — or— of PPP loans distributed were fraudulent. Many scammers are already facing punishment: according to the Government Accountability Office, more than 1,000 people have been convicted of federal charges of defrauding Covid-19 relief programs.