Mt. Lebanon businessman gets 3 years in prison for fraud stemming from arson

A Mt. Lebanon man will spend three years in federal prison stemming from fraud allegations related to a South Side property he owned that burned down.

Prasad Margabandhu, 48, pleaded guilty to bankruptcy fraud and mail fraud in September before U.S. District Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand.

On Thursday, she ordered him to serve prison time, pay $141,000 in restitution and pay another $100,000 in fines.

Federal investigators accused Margabandhu of conspiring with someone else to burn down a property at 1925 E. Carson St.

The fire in June 2022 destroyed the building.

While the arson-related charges were withdrawn Wednesday as part of the plea agreement, the underlying facts were factored into sentencing.

Prosecutors said that from March 2019 to June 2022, Margabandhu filed multiple bankruptcy petitions in the names of companies he controlled to delay efforts by creditors — including the mortgage holder and taxing bodies — to execute judgments on the building.

After the fire, they said, Margabandhu filed an insurance claim on the property.

During the sentencing hearing, the judge listed a number of entities to be paid restitution for unpaid taxes, including Pittsburgh Public Schools, the City of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, as well as the insurance carrier.

Defense attorney Casey White said after the hearing that his client is looking forward to taking advantage of the programs available to him in prison.

“Mr. Margabandhu is going to take this opportunity to reset his life,” White said. “Upon his release, he plans to reimburse all the individuals he affected by his actions.”

The defendant must report to begin his sentence Jan. 8.

Margabandhu is also dealing with a number of other state court matters.

A bar he operated in Oakland, the Panther Pit, was shut down last month after the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office said it was a nuisance, and he was charged with misdemeanor illegal liquor sales.

He is also accused of theft in state court because, authorities say, he took thousands of dollars of merchandise from home improvement stores in the area without paying.

Those cases are pending.