A federal grand jury in the District of Columbia has indicted a Maryland man on charges of major fraud against the United States and making false statements to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The indictment accuses Deepak Jain, 49, from Potomac, of participating in a scheme to mislead the SEC about his company's data center certification.
Deepak Jain was the CEO of an information technology services company, referred to as Company A in the indictment, which provided data center services to clients including the SEC. Between 2012 and 2018, Company A received approximately $10.7 million from the SEC for using its data center located in Beltsville, Maryland.
The indictment claims that Jain created an entity named Uptime Council to inspect and audit data centers. To secure a contract with the SEC and hide that Company A's data center did not meet contractual requirements, Jain allegedly fabricated Uptime Council certification letters. These letters falsely stated that Company A's data center was certified as Tier IV — indicating top levels of reliability, availability, and security. Despite these claims, the SEC reportedly faced issues related to security, cooling, and power at Company A's facility during their contract period.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri commented on the case: "As alleged in the indictment, Jain orchestrated a years-long scheme to defraud the SEC by falsely certifying that his company’s data center met the highest rating level when the actual rating did not satisfy the SEC contract." She added that Jain aimed to benefit himself and his company at the cost of compromising SEC's electronic data security.
Inspector General Deborah Jeffrey of the SEC remarked: "This indictment demonstrates our shared commitment with the Justice Department to hold bad actors accountable for engaging in schemes to defraud the SEC that undermine the integrity and fairness of the government procurement process."
Jain faces six counts of major fraud against the United States and one count of making false statements. If convicted, he could receive up to 10 years in prison for each fraud charge and up to five years for making false statements.
The investigation is being conducted by the SEC Office of Inspector General. Senior Litigation Counsel Vasanth Sridharan and Trial Attorney Spencer Ryan from the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting this case.
Victims believing they are affected by this case can contact the Fraud Section’s Victim Witness Unit at (888) 549-3945 or via email at victimassistance.fraud@usdoj.gov.
It is important to note that an indictment is merely an allegation; all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.