Dual U.S.-Peruvian National Accused of Orchestrating at Least $40,000,000 in Fraudulent Bank Loans Extradited to Houston

A 70-year-old dual U.S.-Peruvian citizen has been brought back to Houston to face charges in a bank fraud scheme that allegedly took in at least $40 million in loan proceeds.

The IRS Criminal Investigation says Hugo Villanueva, formerly of Katy, Texas, made his first appearance in Houston federal court after extradition from Peru on September 17th, 2026.

Prosecutors allege that from at least 2016 to 2021, Villanueva and others filed dozens of loan applications with false information and forged documents, including equipment invoices, tax returns and bank statements.

Villanueva himself is also accused of preparing false tax returns and financial statements to get the fraudulent loans approved.

He left the United States in 2023 before his arrest in Lima, Peru, in November of 2025.

Co-defendant Bun Khath, 45, of Richmond, has pleaded guilty and received a 120-month sentence. Meanwhile, co-defendants Jeremiah Almaguer and Jennifer Williams received 60 months and 12 months, respectively. Three other defendants have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.

Villanueva faces a detention hearing on October 7th.

“Villanueva faces up to 30 years in prison and a possible $1 million maximum fine for the conspiracy, bank fraud, and false statement to obtain credit charges. He also faces up to 20 years in prison and a possible $500,000 maximum fine or twice the amount of the value involved in the transaction for the money laundering conspiracy charge.”

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The post Dual U.S.-Peruvian National Accused of Orchestrating at Least $40,000,000 in Fraudulent Bank Loans Extradited to Houston appeared first on The Daily Hodl.