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Baltimore fleet official enters not-guilty plea in $2.8 million PPP case
Kara DiPietro, a Baltimore City Fleet Management operations chief, pleaded not guilty to six bank-fraud counts tied to pandemic-era loan applications. Prosecutors say her companies received nearly $2.8 million in PPP funds after seeking $7.5 million.
Baltimore City Fleet Management operations chief Kara A. DiPietro pleaded not guilty Oct. 26 in federal court to six counts of bank fraud stemming from applications for Paycheck Protection Program loans in 2020 and 2021.
A federal grand jury indicted DiPietro, 49, on Oct. 8. Prosecutors allege she used applications for companies she controlled, including a Columbia millworking business and a Baltimore microloan company, to obtain nearly $2.8 million in pandemic relief loans. The applications sought a total of $7.5 million from four financial institutions, according to the indictment.
The indictment alleges DiPietro submitted employer identification numbers that had not been assigned by the IRS, failed to disclose earlier PPP applications and falsely certified that her companies had not received multiple draws from the same funding source. The allegations have not been proven in court.
At her arraignment in U.S. District Court, DiPietro said she understood the charges and requested a jury trial. She agreed to surrender her passport, refrain from opening new bank accounts and report regularly to a court officer. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Wenner said prosecutors would not seek her detention before trial, which has not yet been scheduled. A federal public defender was appointed after the court reviewed an affidavit describing her financial hardship.
If convicted, DiPietro faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine.
DiPietro joined the city’s Department of General Services in April 2025 as deputy chief of Fleet Management, a role with an annual salary of $130,000 overseeing a municipal fleet of about 5,600 vehicles and city repair yards. The department’s annual budget is $96 million.
She remained in the job after the indictment and had been scheduled to attend a transit mobility conference in San Antonio. The mayor and Board of Estimates had approved a $2,547 travel request, but the mayor’s office later said she would not attend. Asked whether DiPietro remains employed or has been placed on leave, the office declined to comment, citing personnel matters. The Department of General Services had not responded to questions about her hiring by the time of the report.
The case concerns alleged misuse of federal relief funds intended to help businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. The PPP was administered through private lenders and backed by the Small Business Administration.