The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced that a Texas engineer has pleaded guilty to filing fraudulent bank loan applications seeking more than $10 million dollars in forgivable loans guaranteed by the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act.

The CARES Act established the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) to provide emergency relief to small businesses experiencing economic hardship because of the Coronavirus.  The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive SBA-guaranteed loans.  According to DOJ, the defendant sought SBA-guaranteed loans from the PPP by claiming to have 250 employees earning wages when, in fact, no employees worked for his purported business.

Read the DOJ press release here.

Click here to read more about G&G’s private economic crime unit dedicated to combatting COVID-19 stimulus funds fraud.