Attorney General Chris Carr today announced that his White Collar and Cyber Crime Unit secured the convictions of 17 individuals who fraudulently obtained nearly $500,000 in loans from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
Where are these individuals from and what are the charges? All those prosecuted are residents of Mitchell County, Georgia.
The defendants pleaded guilty to felony charges of Theft by Taking and False Swearing and received various sentences. Each defendant was also ordered to pay back any amounts they received.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Charles Van Keuren. It was investigated by the Investigations Section of the Attorney General’s Prosecution Division.
What is the PPP program? Established by the CARES Act and implemented by the Small Business Administration (SBA), the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) administered SBA-backed loans to assist small businesses in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Applicants certified under penalty of law that the funds were necessary due to economic uncertainty and would only be used for business-related costs. Applicants could later apply for loan forgiveness if employee numbers and wage amounts remained stable.
How did the defendants take advantage of this program? All 17 defendants in this case submitted an application stating that they owned a business that had been negatively affected by the COVID-19 shutdowns.
Investigations revealed that, not only did the defendants not own their own businesses, but they also submitted forged tax documents in support of their PPP applications.
What AG Chris Carr had to say:
- “The Paycheck Protection Program was designed to support small business owners – not criminals looking to take advantage of a global health pandemic. With these convictions, we’re sending a message that fraud and abuse will not be tolerated in this state. If you steal from taxpayers to line your own pockets, we’re coming for you, and you will be forced to pay back every dollar you stole.”
