Reports

CINCINNATI– A man who filed for relief under the Paycheck Protection Program and fraudulently claimed that he was running a business during the time he was incarcerated was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 12 months and one day in prison.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Two Central Ohio women are charged federally with crimes related to fraudulently receiving more than $2.8 million total in covid-relief funds from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

CINCINNATI – A Cincinnati man is charged with wire fraud as part of a scheme to fraudulently obtain a Covid relief loan.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A former Columbus woman was sentenced in federal court today to 72 months in prison for committing 16 counts of wire and passport fraud. The defendant stole the identity of a baby who died as an infant and used the infant’s identity to obtain a passport, a student pilot license, a job as a flight attendant, and pandemic relief loans.

A federal jury in the Southern District of Ohio today convicted Kelli Prather, 51, of Cincinnati of crimes pertaining to her request for more than $1.2 million in pandemic relief loans. She was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals after the jury returned its guilty verdicts.

A Tipp City, Ohio man was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 18 months in prison for defrauding a Dayton non-profit organization of rental assistance funds.

An Orlando, Florida man pleaded guilty to wire fraud and making false statements related to five coronavirus relief Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loans and four Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL). The businesses were not open when he sought the loans.

CINCINNATI – Federal agents arrested nine individuals for crimes relating to a conspiracy to buy firearms online and have them shipped to Cincinnati-area federal firearms licensees (FFLs). It is alleged that more than 70 firearms were bought with stolen credit card information and picked up, or attempted to be picked up, at local FFLs via straw purchases that hid the identity of the true buyer. Several of the defendants are also charged with COVID-relief crimes totaling more than $120,000 in alleged loss.

CINCINNATI– A man who filed for relief under the Paycheck Protection Program and fraudulently claimed that he was running a business during the time he was incarcerated pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today to one count of wire fraud.