But of course, the government has to prove the allegations. The pair are charged with submitting 18 fraudulent Paycheck Protection applications with false payroll tax returns, and receiving $1.4 million. I did too!! Days later she paid $8,000 on her student loan and then went on a spending spree at Sephora and other retailers, it is alleged. Diamond Blue Smith, a recording artist, is charged with being part of the nationwide $24 million scam ring mentioned above. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]. Amir Aqeel, Siddiq Azeemuddin, Rifat Bajwa, Pardeep Basra, Mayer Misak, Maurico Navia, and Richard Reuth allegedly participated together in filing more than 80 fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program applications for $16 million. Goldstein allegedly transferred $355,000 in his personal bank account. That didnt stop him from allegedly applying for two PPP loans using different company names. When seeking forgiveness, companies are required to provide documentation, and they must affirmatively certify as to the accuracy of this documentation and as to compliance itself. Manhattan Businessman (New York May 21), 6. When making use of PPP loan funds, companies should extensively document their expenditures in order to demonstrate that they have used their PPP loans for authorized purposes only. In some cases, pursuant to Rule 7.04 of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct and the equivalent in other jurisdictions, a case is referred to a Local Counsel, the Firm will not participate in the representation. Main Office:
The PPP allows the interest and principal on the PPP loan to be entirely forgiven if the business spends the loan proceeds on these expense items within a designated period of time and uses a certain percentage of the PPP loan proceeds for payroll expenses. Thissearchable website looks at which companies got money from last year's federal program to help businesses retain their workers amid the pandemic economic shutdown. Lock For further information please contact the U.S. Attorneys Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016. He allegedly used the loot to buy a Tesla car, make personal investments and make his home mortgage payments. So far, six. On August 9, Manukyan allegedly boarded a flight from Mexico City to Belarus. But in this PPP fraudulent case, five individuals from three states are charged with conspiracy to fraudulently get over $4 million and misusing the proceeds. Lee Price III is charged with making false statements to a financial institution, wire and bank fraud and engaging in unlawful monetary transactions. Have we seen the last of Paycheck Protection Program PPP loan fraud prosecutions? In such a case, a client will sign an engagement exclusively with the Local Counsel. Andre Lee Gaines, 67, of Dallas - pleaded guilty on June 17, 2021 to one count of making false statements to the FBI in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Gaines Reservation and Travel. Nadine Consuelo Jackson is charged with bank fraud and other charges for seeking a forgivable loan in the amount of $1.3 million, $1.2 million and another $46,000 in Economic Injury Disaster funding. Michael Bischoff, the CEO and co-founder of a Michigan chain called Passport Pizza, allegedly falsified documents and employees to obtain $931,000 in PPP money. 2023 www.onlineathens.com. See how PPP works. A requirement of forgiveness is that borrowers must rehire or retain workers and maintain salary levels. With few case-by-case exceptions, Firm's practice is limited to matters and questions of federal law and federal procedure. Attorneys Tal Chaiken and Nathan Kitchens of the Northern District of Georgia and Trial Attorney Siji Moore of the Criminal Divisions Fraud Section are prosecuting the case. One was on behalf of a company called Texas Barbecue and the other called Houston Landscaping. Richard Ayvazyan, Marietta Terabelian, Artur Ayvazyan, Tamara Dadyan were charged in a complaint claiming they conspired together as part of a disaster relief loan fraud ring based in Los Angeles. After leaving the hotel he opened GMP Cars. A small number of fraudulent cases was inevitable given the amazing speed with which the Paycheck Protection Program came into being. Katie Quarterman, 28, of Atlanta, Georgia, Nikia Wakefield, 42, of Rockville, Maryland, and. This case is being investigated by the U.S. Wads of cash, casino runs and strip club visits also figured in the mix in the PPP loan fraud spree. Florida Man Buys 40-foot Catamaran (Florida September 1), 43. It is alleged he got over $190,000 in proceeds and managed to withdraw cash or cashiers checks for $140,000. Official websites use .gov Authorities allege they falsely claimed to be farmers in the yards of their small homes. ATLANTA Federal fraud charges were filed against 10 people, including six Metro Atlanta residents, who stole more than $700,000 in COVID-19-related government aid, prosecutors said. Report fraud/thefthttps://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/covid-19-relief-options/report-id-theft-fraud The banks internal auditors will then report it to the SBA faster than you can say oops, bad move.. PLANNED PARENTHOOD MUST BE PROSECUTED FOR TAXPAYER MONEY THEFT! Didier Kindambu is facing charges that he falsified payroll documentation to $2.5 million. The allegations say he submitted fake IRS documentation. Robert, youre probably right about finding fraud for years to come. The charges allege he applied several times to get aid totaling $3 million, in the names of businesses with no actual operations. Part of the scheme allegedly involved a cystic fibrosis foundation he ran, called Skylar CF Foundation. Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting. The former manager of the San Francisco Hilton allegedly embezzled from the hotel in a kickback scheme going back to 2013. Celestine Coletta Strong, Jawuan Polk, Patrick Earl Lewis, and Tyzhaun Marqui Lewis were charged in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain PPP funds. Fraudsters like Benjamin Hayford greedily steal money that should be going to Americas small business owners who are struggling during this public health crisis, said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores. According to the SBA, the Paycheck Protection Program ended on May 31, 2021. Attorneys for the Northern District of Georgia, 10 defendants indicted in multi-state, fraudulent COVID-19 related business loan scheme, Arizona man pleads guilty to extorting Georgia Tech, Georgia woman charged with stealing over $450,000 in government and retirement benefits. Charges were recently brought against several celebrities, entertainers and business leaders in Georgia for allegedly defrauding the Paycheck Protection Program for a total of more than $3. Former Police Officer Sentenced For Money Laundering. Justice Department announces charges brought against 57 people for PPP fraud, representing $175 million in alleged fraud. Local Basketball Coach Indicted (Florida November 13), 66. East Texas Man and the Online Name Generator (Texas May 19), 5. We Will Protect Your Rights, Reputation and Freedom. Tristan Bishop Pan was charged for allegedly seeking $6 million in Paycheck Protection Program loan. Claims of employees who didnt exist. The federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is subject to a whole host of rules and restrictions. A PPP loan is a Small Business Authority-backed loan that helps businesses keep their workforce employed during the COVID-19 crisis. They do not appear to be honest mistakes. However, on April 14, 2020, Olugbuyi allegedly filed a 1040 non-filer return reporting $1 in income for 2019 which qualified him to receive a $1,200 economic impact payment. A discovery by the U.S. Co-Leader of COVID-19 Loan Fraud Ring Extradited from Montenegro to Begin Serving Prison Sentence . Dwan Ashong a/k/a Dwan Gilpin, 40, of Jacksonville, Florida, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with her involvement in several businesses loans. In order to get Paycheck Protection loans forgiven and not have to repay the loan, owners have to show proof that at least 60% was used for payroll and the rest for other permitted expenses. I was not hired back. The Vegas High Roller (California July 16), 26. The defendants are charged with using fake and stolen identifies to apply for 35 CARES Act loans. Researchers estimate that $76 billion in PPP loan money was taken illicitly. Ronald Bell, who conspired to extort money from Georgia Institute of Technology, has pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit extortion. Martin Kao, the CEO of Navatek LLC (now known as Martin Defense Group LLC), was charged in a federal complaint with fraudulently obtaining $12.8 million in CARES Act loans. Prominent CEO of Hawaii Government Contractor (Hawaii -September 30), 55. Joshua Thomas Argires of Houston was arrested on various fraud charges. Buoi allegedly misrepresented how many wokers he had and that the United States was their primary residence (required). But keep it all in perspective. A pair of Georgia businesses are in hot water over fraud allegations related to their PPP loans. Oberheiden P.C. The SBA programs are complex and it is easy to trip up innocently. Firm's lawyers are only licensed to practice state law in the states mentioned in their respective biographies. David T. Hines of Miami is charged with fraudulently seeking $13.5 million in PPP funds using false statements about various companies payroll expenses. Although the amount of the loans, $9,400 and $20,800, are not as large as some on the list, United States government agencies are not giving them any slack. Under the terms of the program, for example, companies must represent that: During a federal PPP loan fraud audit or investigation, federal agents will not just be looking to assess loan recipients eligibility, but they will also be looking to determine whether companies have documentation on hand to qualify the representations they made in their PPP loan applications. Larry Jordan and Sutukh El, two brothers, are charged with fraudulent PPP loan applications to the tune of $7 million, and actually receiving over $600,000. The False Claims Act can impose steep financial penalties, including treble damages. Cherry was on supervised release in an unrelated federal case when he applied to the Small Business Administration program. He was arrested after he booked a same-day flight to Pakistan. Evasiveness and inability (or unwillingness) to produce documentation of PPP compliance is a major red flag for fraud as well. Benjamin Hayford is charged with fraud for seeking $4.4 million in PPP financing. - Federal Lawyer We Will Protect Your Rights, Reputation and Freedom. Go big or go home could be the motto here. Help us crowdsource fraud detection in the PPP program! The criminal complaint goes on to say Caraballo also received $55,000 in Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) relief. SBA partner banks initially approved 11 of the fraudulent PPP loans Lawson submitted and ultimately paid . He ultimately received over $2 million but the government seized $1.98 million from business bank accounts. Main Office:
75 Ted Turner Dr. SW
Someone we know got 4 PPP loans, all under diff businesses, but almost certain he submitted all the same ppwk for each business. The complaint alleges George provided false and misleading documents and apparently couldnt keep his fake employees straight. Attorneys office, the companies didnt exist or didnt have the employees he claimed. Nine EIDL and PPP Loan Applications (Washington October 27), 62. Rafael Maturino and Winston James were charged separately but allegedly worked together to carry out their scheme. Unfortunately, the owners of Victoria Nails & Spa saw this program as their own personal piggy bank.. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused financial hardships for many hardworking business owners across the nation. And you wont believe how rotten they are. In order to account for all disbursements from their PPP loans, companies should deposit their loans into distinct accounts, and they should not commingle their PPP loan funds with any other company assets. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Six people were charged by indictment in this ring spanning two states. High-Living Florida Man (Florida July 27), 29. Three people she allegedly claimed as staff told investigators they never heard of her company. Justice Department representatives say honest owners acting in good faith shouldnt worry. Chanchikyan has pleaded not guilty, and his trial is scheduled for October 4, 2022. Chinese Man Found Guilty Of $20 Million Dollar PPP Fraud Scheme Chinese national who lived in New York pled guilty in connection with a fraudulent scheme to obtain over $20 million. The government wisely decided to move fast and let the justice system track down any miscreants. According to the SBA, the Paycheck Protection Program ended on . He allegedly received $17.3 million and spent the money on a Bentley convertible as well as sending millions of dollars abroad. Sum of Forgiven Amount. The defendants allegedly abused both programs by submitting fraudulent applications and obtaining thousands of dollars that should have gone to support struggling businesses. Abramovs allegedly got nearly $2 million from seven lenders. Atlanta, GA 30303-3309. He allegedly bought a 2020 Mercedes and a special edition Ford F-250 pickup truck, and wired $537,000 to a property management company in south Florida. Millions of dollars of coronavirus relief funds meant to keep employees on the payroll were instead blown on extravagant personal spending sprees all by a relatively small handful of people. Kao allegedly transferred $2 million to personal accounts. To date, a total of 22 individuals have been charged in connection with the fraudulent scheme. The maximum that one person can get for a PPP loan is $20,833. Depending on the charges, penalties could include up to $1 million in fines and up to 30 years in prison, legal experts say. 75 Ted Turner Dr. SW
Attorneys for the Northern District of Georgia, Twenty-two defendants charged in connection with alleged $11.1 million Paycheck Protection Program fraud scheme, https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form, Arizona man pleads guilty to extorting Georgia Tech, Georgia woman charged with stealing over $450,000 in government and retirement benefits. On March 16, 2020, Attorney General William Barr directed all 94 U.S. Attorneys Offices to prioritize investigating and prosecuting PPP loan cases of fraud. Gaughan is also charged separately with allegedly embezzling $472,000 from the Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. where he previously worked. Attorneys, including the Fraud Section, have resulted in a variety of charges, including wire fraud (18 U.S.C. Keith William Nicolettawas charged with seeking more than $1.9 million in a Paycheck Protection Program loan to pay employees of a scrap metal company when, in fact, he had paid no payroll taxes for employees. PPP Loan Recipient List By State Georgia 553,322 TOTAL PPP LOANS $24.9B TOTAL LOAN AMOUNT $44,956 AVERAGE PPP LOAN 5 AVG COMPANY SIZE Georgia has a total of 553,322 businesses that received Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans from the Small Business Administration. Obtaining more than one PPP loan (or stacking PPP loans) is prohibited, and companies that applied with multiple lenders could face allegations for attempting to stack PPP loans. Ex-Microsoft Executive (Washington July 23), 28. Glad theyre doing the work to clean it up and recover some of these funds. The complaint alleges he ultimately received a loan for over $1 million. Kenneth Gaughan is charged with obtaining over $2.1 million in PPP and Economic Injury Disaster Loan funds. But it may not take that long. The impact of COVID-19 on small businesses around the country has been devastating, said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. Treasury names 650K small businesses receiving govt loans, Why the Small Business Administration loan program frustrates borrowers, More than 5,000 PPP loans, totaling more than $200m, approved in Clarke County, Click here to search our PPP loan database, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. In that same time frame, Lawson allegedly submitted 11 fraudulent PPP loan applications on behalf of many of the same individuals in an attempt to obtain at least $224,000. Which goes to show that most of the defendants arent very smart. Suite 600
* * * DOJ will almost certainly expect cooperating institutions to provide investigative leads and will likely pursue those leads primarily through its own resources where it can., So imagine this scenario. The defendants are presumed innocent of the charges, and it will be the governments burden to prove the defendants guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial. Still, a June 2020 report by the Government Accountability Office found, there is a significant risk that some fraudulent or inflated applications were approved. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin then announced that the Treasury Department would review loan recipients over $2 million. Five others pleaded guilty in this $3,000,000 ring: Antonio D. Hosey, Timothy Williams, Stanley Dorceus, Kenneth L. Wright, Jr., and Mark A. Stewart. Law enforcement assisting in the investigation included the Small Business Administration OIG office, the FBI, FDIC and others. He allegedly certified that his business was operating as of February 15, 2020 (a requirement of the law) and had 247 employees, but didnt even set up a company entity until a few days before applying for the PPP loan. Fewer than 150 defendants out of of over 5.2 million loans is a minuscule percentage. Applied for PPP Loan While out on Bail (Tennessee November 9), 64. Argires allegedly invested some of the proceeds in a cryptocurrency account and withdrew cash via ATM transactions. He also agreed to forfeit various assets, including more than $2.1 million in seized funds, three luxury vehicles a 2018 Mercedes-Benz S-Class S65AMG, a 2018 Land Rover Range Rover, and a 2017 Acura NSX and several items of jewelry, including a gold Rolex. A 2020 Bentley Continental and Cadillac Escalade (New York December 21), 77. 1343) and making false statements to the SBA and FDIC-insured banks (18 U.S.C. 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