Former New Hampshire senator Andy Sanborn secured $2 million in pandemic relief loans —Here’s how

Laurie and Andy Sanborn own The Draft Sports Bar and Grill and Concord Casino located on South Main Street in Concord, New Hampshire.
Published: 11-15-2024 4:00 PM |
On April 14, 2020, six weeks after the first case of COVID-19 was detected in New Hampshire, Andy Sanborn secured his first $95,000 federal pandemic loan.
The money was awarded to the Draft sports bar in downtown Concord, which abruptly closed in March with all the other restaurants by the governor’s executive order. With multiple businesses and limited liability companies, that was just the beginning of the assistance Sanborn applied for and received. Within the next two weeks, the Sanborn’s Concord Casino, which had been open for less than two years, received an additional $29,300.
The former state senator continued applying for and receiving state and federal relief loans. By 2023, he was accused of using the proceeds of one of the federal loans to buy two Porches for himself and a Ferrari for his wife, outgoing State Rep. Laurie Sanborn. This year he was arrested and accused of taking more pandemic funds than he was entitled to by lying on his application and then using the proceeds to pay off the mortgage of a lake house owned by his wife.
An investigation by the Monitor revealed that Sanborn collected over $2 million from various pandemic relief programs over a two-year period.
Most of these applications were submitted through the Draft or Win Win Win, which owns the Concord Casino in Concord. Smaller loans were issued to three other Sanborn companies.
Under federal guidelines, casinos with fewer than 500 employees were eligible for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), but not for the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL). Yet Sanborn managed to secure both, applying through both Win Win Win and The Draft.
According to public records, Sanborn, who manages most of the business ventures of the Bedford couple, received $287,320 through the Paycheck Protection Program across his various companies.
■ The Draft, the downtown bar established in January 2006 that served as the landlord to the Concord Casino, received $95,000 in 2020 and another $133,420 in 2021.
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■ Win Win Win established in August 2018, which owns the Concord Casino that opened in early 2019, received $29,300 in 2020 and $29,300 again in 2021.
The loans Sanborn received through the Paycheck Protection Program have been forgiven.
Sanborn received an additional $1,344,000 in Economic Injury Disaster Loans: $500,000 went to The Draft in 2021, and $844,000 to Win Win Win in 2022.
In 2023, a joint investigation between the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office and the state Lottery Commission found that Sanborn fraudulently used that money to purchase three race cars – two Porsche 987 Cayman S models for himself and a Ferrari F430 Challenge, which he gifted to Laurie Sanborn.
The investigation also found him unsuitable to participate in the state’s charitable gaming operations, leading to Concord Casino’s closure.
State investigators accused Sanborn of misrepresenting his business on the federal application, omitting the trade name “Concord Casino” and listing the business activity as “Miscellaneous Services.” The findings were turned over to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, which began a federal criminal investigation.
At the state level, Sanborn and his business, Win Win Win, face charges of theft by deception and theft by unauthorized taking. He is accused of inflating revenue figures by about $1 million to secure a larger payout from the Main Street Relief Fund, which was designed to support small businesses during the pandemic.
Sanborn received $289,682 from the Win Win Win application.
However, if revenue had been accurately reported, the business would have qualified for only $98,208. In its application, Win Win Win and The Draft claimed combined gross receipts of $3,169,209 for 2019, while actual receipts totaled just $2,071,328, according to court documents.
Three months after receiving the state funds, Sanborn transferred $177,000 to his personal account to pay off the mortgage on a seasonal three-bedroom property overlooking Lake Winnipesaukee, bought by Laurie Sanborn in 2015, according to court documents.
Although Sanborn overstated The Draft’s earnings, the Attorney General’s Office chose not to press charges against the business.
When asked, the Attorney General’s Office said, “With this criminal matter ongoing we have no new comment or updates to provide at this time.”
Yet, both Sanborn and Win Win Win were charged last month just as Sanborn was trying to close a deal to sell Concord Casino.
A hearing officer ruled him unsuitable for charitable gaming last December, ordering the sale with a two-year license revocation if he missed the deadline.
Sanborn’s attorneys argue that the state’s actions are intended to prevent him from selling the casino.
Although his original deadline was Sept 30, he has received several extensions, but time is running out.
“There is no earthly reason to indict a single-member LLC when you’ve indicted the single member for identical conduct,” said Adam Katz, one of the attorneys for Sanborn at a hearing. “The only reason to do that is to try to impede the sale.”
In addition to Win Win Win and The Draft, three other businesses registered at Sanborn’s address in Bedford also received money from the Main Street Relief Fund.
■ Best Revenge: $5,906
■Campy: $79,301
■Hooville - $2,310
As Sanborn pushes forward with the sale of his casino on South Main Street, he faces an upcoming hearing this month at the Concord Circuit Court on indictments accusing him and Win Win Win of inflating figures on their Main Street Relief Fund application.
Sruthi Gopalakrishnan can be reached at sgopalakrishnan@cmonitor.com