Cesar Campos-Reyes, the Lee County man and restaurant owner who was the focus of multi-site business raids this week, pleaded not guilty in federal court Friday to multiple counts of bank fraud, wire fraud, money laundering and forfeiture.

Campos-Reyes, 52, faces a possible sentence of up to 30 years, along with fines, for allegedly taking $225,000 in fraudulent, pandemic-related business loans.

“Rather than use the funds for eligible expenses, the funds were used for personal expenses unrelated to the specified authorized expenses under the Paycheck Protection Program Rule,” stated a federal indictment filed in April.

Campos-Reyes submitted applications for PPP loans for Mariachi’s Mexican Grill, El Patron of Pace, Pensacola and Prattville, according to the filing. He transferred the funds to his own account rather than using them to pay workers and cover the cost of his building mortgages and utilities as authorized for the loans, according to the indictment.

The raids that included a search for Campos-Reyes Wednesday were carried out at 14 locations, including multiple Mexican restaurants and other properties in six Alabama counties. The operation is part of a larger investigation into human smuggling, drug trafficking and financial crimes, according to authorities.

Law enforcement arrested 40 people thought to be undocumented immigrants and seized large amounts of powder cocaine, methamphetamine, crack and pills, 20 guns and $100,000 in cash.

Three other unnamed people were arrested Wednesday and two will be charged with harboring undocumented immigrants. Another person will be charged with crimes related to distributing drugs.

Authorities did not say where the drugs were seized.

“This is allegedly a transnational organized entity that has committed this activity, and this operation is not about any one offense,” Special Agent Steven Schrank of U.S. Homeland Security Investigations said Wednesday.

The raids were carried out by ICE, FBI, BATF, U.S. Marshal’s Service, Homeland Security, the Alabama Department of Corrections and other local law enforcement offices. They included locations in Lee, Elmore, Autauga, Crenshaw, Macon and Baldwin counties.