Reports

Yoelvis Denis Hernandez, a/k/a “Guajiro,” 42, was arrested yesterday in Del Rio, Texas, on a South Florida indictment charging him with stealing 192 U.S. government-owned medical ventilators worth about three million dollars. According to court documents, the ventilators were heading to a COVID-19 intensive care facility in El Salvador as part of a United States Government COVID-19 aid program when they were stolen in South Florida, while in transit.

BOSTON – A Texas woman was indicted by a federal grand jury yesterday in connection with her alleged involvement in a scheme to fraudulently claim COVID-19-related unemployment assistance.

The Department of Justice today announced criminal charges against 14 defendants, including 11 newly-charged defendants and three who were charged in superseding indictments, in seven federal districts across the United States for their alleged participation in various health care fraud schemes that exploited the COVID-19 pandemic and resulted in over $143 million in false billings.

Seattle – A Nigerian citizen arrested May 14, 2021 at JFK Airport in New York, is now indicted for conspiracy, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft for his scheme to steal over $350,000 in unemployment benefits from the Washington State Employment Security Department, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman

Two United States Postal Service (USPS) employees pleaded guilty today to federal criminal charges accusing them of unlawfully buying and cashing tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of Postal money orders with unemployment benefits fraudulently obtained with false claims of COVID-related job losses.

A Texas man pleaded guilty today to filing fraudulent loan applications seeking more than $3 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

Seattle – A Nigerian citizen was arrested Friday evening at JFK Airport in New York on a criminal complaint charging him with wire fraud for his scheme to steal over $350,000 in unemployment benefits from the Washington State Employment Security Department, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman.

PROVIDENCE - A Massachusetts man who faked suicide shortly after he and a co-defendant became the first in the nation to be charged with fraudulently seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in forgivable pandemic relief small business loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to commit bank fraud and failure to appear in court.

BOSTON – A Malden man pleaded guilty today to identity fraud charges in connection with submitting fraudulent applications for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA). The federal PUA program provides unemployment-related benefits to individuals who have been impacted by COVID-19.

A Florida man was sentenced today to more than six years in prison for fraudulently obtaining approximately $3.9 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and using those funds, in part, to purchase a $318,000 Lamborghini luxury car for himself.

BOSTON – A Miami woman was arrested today in connection with allegedly filing and obtaining fraudulent pandemic-related loans and using those funds for personal expenses.

An Orange County man was arrested today on federal charges alleging he fraudulently obtained approximately $5 million in Payment Protection Program (PPP) loans for his sham businesses, then used the money on himself, including purchasing Ferrari, Bentley and Lamborghini sports cars.

TULSA, Okla. – A former Tulsa resident who fraudulently applied for a Paycheck Protection Program forgivable loan guaranteed by the Small Business Administration under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act pleaded guilty today in federal court, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.

A criminal complaint was filed in the District of New Jersey today charging a dual-resident of New York and Florida with fraudulently obtaining and laundering nearly $4 million in funds from the COVID-19 relief Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

A Deepwater, Missouri, man pleaded guilty in federal court today to fraudulently obtaining more than $500,000 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

A 29-year-old Corpus Christi man has been ordered to federal prison after he admitted to devising a scheme to fraudulently misappropriate $255,052 in unemployment benefits meant for those suffering financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic

BOSTON – A former North Shore resident was arrested today in connection with allegedly filing a fraudulent loan application in order to obtain over $660,000 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan funds and using those funds for personal expenses, including an alpaca farm in Vermont.

BOSTON – A Dudley man was arrested today in connection with his alleged involvement in a scheme to fraudulently obtain and misuse COVID-19-related unemployment assistance.

BOSTON – A Charlestown man whose identity is unknown was charged last week in connection with an alleged scheme to fraudulently claim COVID-19-related unemployment assistance and commit other frauds, all in connection with his use of a stolen identity.

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Puerto Rico filed an Information charging Tonatiuh Antonio Leal-Matos with two counts of violating the Defense Production Act (50 U.S.C. § 4512) in relation to price gouging personal protective equipment (“PPE”), face masks and disinfecting wipes, during the COVID-19 national public health emergency, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is in charge of the investigation.

Orlando, Florida – Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppmann announces that the United States has obtained a final civil judgment ordering the forfeiture of $8,417,261.38 in proceeds from bank fraud and money laundering offenses related to COVID Relief Fraud.

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – A Las Vegas woman was sentenced today to 12 months and a day in federal prison for fraudulently applying for and receiving nearly $23,000 in unemployment benefits debit cards, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Christopher Chiou for the District of Nevada and Special Agent in Charge Quentin Heiden of the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG), Los Angeles Region.

BOSTON – A Quincy man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston in connection with selling lanyards that falsely claimed to protect against viruses.

Miami, Florida -- A federal grand jury in Miami has returned an indictment charging a Florida man -- Mark Grenon, 62 -- and his three sons -- Jonathan Grenon, 34, Jordan Grenon, 26, and Joseph Grenon, 32 -- with fraudulently marketing and selling “Miracle Mineral Solution,” a toxic industrial bleach, as a cure for COVID-19, cancer, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, autism, malaria, hepatitis, Parkinson’s, herpes, HIV/AIDS, and other serious medical conditions, and with defying federal court orders.

A North Carolina man was sentenced today to 63 months in prison for perpetrating three fraud schemes between March and July 2020 connected to the COVID-19 pandemic, through which he defrauded consumers and the federal government’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program (EIDL), created to assist small business owners during the pandemic.

PROVIDENCE – A federal grand jury in Providence on Friday returned a 17-count indictment charging a local man, who used the moniker “Mr. Vacation,” with using stolen Social Security numbers and personal identifying information of numerous individuals to apply for Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act funded unemployment insurance compensation from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and for Economic Injury Disaster Loans from the Small Business Administration.

BOSTON – A Texas woman was arrested last week and charged in federal court in Boston in connection with her alleged involvement in a scheme to fraudulently claim COVID-19-related unemployment assistance.

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – An Arizona man has been sentenced today to 30 months in federal prison for possessing multiple unemployment benefits debit cards — all in different names — and intending to fraudulently obtain nearly $239,000 in benefits, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Christopher Chiou for the District of Nevada and Special Agent-in-Charge Quentin Heiden of the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG), Los Angeles Region.

SAN JUAN, P.R. – On April 7 and 8, 2021, the Federal Grand Jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned eleven separate indictments charging twelve (12) individuals with fraud against the Unemployment Insurance and Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. These cases were investigated by various federal agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), the United States Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (USDOL-OIG), the Social Security Office...

A Wisconsin man pleaded guilty today for his role in fraudulently obtaining over $600,000 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

TULSA, Okla. - A Tulsa couple who fraudulently applied for Paycheck Protection Program forgivable loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act pleaded guilty in federal court, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.

Federal authorities this week arrested three Inland Empire residents on fraud charges alleging they used information belonging to California state prison inmates to file for pandemic-related unemployment benefits, with each causing at least $345,000 in losses.

A Riverside County woman was sentenced today to 37 months in federal prison for fraudulently obtaining more than $500,000 in COVID-19-related unemployment benefits by using the stolen personal information of dozens of individuals obtained from the darknet.

PROVIDENCE – The United States Attorney’s Office, the Office of the Rhode Island Attorney General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Rhode Island State Police today publicly updated information on criminal investigations and prosecutions of individuals who are alleged to have targeted and defrauded federally funded programs created to assist businesses and individuals impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including the Paycheck Protection Program and Unemployment Insurance Program. Since the enactment of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act in March 2020, a...

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland has seized “healthbridgescience.com,” “global-pandemic-vaccines.com,” and “genobioscience.com” all of which purported to be the websites of actual biotechnology companies developing treatments for the COVID-19 virus but instead were allegedly used to collect the personal information of individuals visiting the sites, in order to use the information for nefarious purposes, including fraud, phishing attacks, and/or deployment of malware. Individuals visiting those sites now will see a message that the site has been seized by the federal...

CINCINNATI – Four local individuals have been charged federally with defrauding COVID-19 pandemic relief funding programs. In separate cases, the four are alleged to have lied about owning businesses and employing others. Some defendants allegedly applied multiple times for relief funding and some allegedly spent the funding they received on lavish personal items and vacation travel.

A criminal complaint has been filed charging Rudolph Brooks, Jr., age 45, of Cheltenham, Maryland, on the federal charge of wire fraud. In addition, law enforcement obtained warrants authorizing the seizure of more than $2.2 million held in various bank accounts, as well as a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The criminal complaint was filed on March 29, 2021 and was unsealed following Brooks’s arrest on April 2, 2021.

Tampa, Florida – Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppmann announces the filing of a criminal complaint charging Julio Lugo (44) and Rosenide Venant (37), both of Davenport, with conspiracy and making false statements to a financial institution. Lugo has also been charged with an illegal monetary transaction relating to the illegal use of coronavirus relief funds to pay off a note on a luxury car purchased during the conspiracy. If convicted, Lugo faces a maximum penalty of 45 years in federal prison; Venant faces up to 35 years’ imprisonment.

The Department of Justice has received reports that fraudsters are creating fraudulent COVID-19 vaccine surveys for consumers to fill out with the promise of a prize or cash at the conclusion of the survey. In reality, the surveys are used to steal money from consumers and unlawfully capture consumers’ personal information.

U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett sentenced Nicholas Milano White, age 30, of Baltimore, Maryland, on March 30, 2021, to eight years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for the federal charges of conspiracy to steal mail, emergency benefits fraud, and aggravated identity theft. Judge Bennett also ordered White to pay restitution of $29,234, the full amount of the victims’ losses.

A Santa Clarita Valley man pleaded guilty today to perpetrating a scheme to fraudulently obtain approximately $1.8 million in COVID-19 relief guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) through the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

The United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, the Acting Assistant Attorney General of the United States Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, and representatives from their partner law enforcement agencies announced today an update on their criminal enforcement efforts in South Florida to combat fraud under the CARES Act, the relief legislation that Congress passed one year ago to help individuals and businesses financially survive the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, the enforcement efforts announced today include prosecutions against defendants accused of trying to...

Additional charges have been returned by a federal grand jury against an elected Missouri state representative for a nearly $900,000 COVID-19 fraud scheme, following her indictment last month for a separate fraud scheme in which she made false claims about a supposed stem cell treatment marketed through her clinics in southern Missouri, and for illegally providing prescription drugs to clients of those clinics.

Fort Myers, Florida – A federal jury today found Casey David Crowther (35, Fort Myers) guilty of bank fraud, making a false statement to a lending institution, and two counts of money laundering. Crowther faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison for the bank fraud and false statement charges, and up to 10 years in federal prison for each money laundering charge. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

A 44-year-old Bryan resident has been charged with one count of wire fraud

A South Florida tax preparer was charged Tuesday by criminal information with wire fraud in connection with a scheme to obtain over 100 COVID-19-relief loans under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

DAYTON – A Dayton woman was sentenced in federal court today to prison for fraudulently obtaining more than $2.5 million in pandemic relief loans.

Seattle – A Washington tech executive pleaded guilty today to wire fraud and money laundering in connection with his scheme to obtain over $5.5 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and laundering the proceeds, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman for the Western District of Washington.

A federal grand jury in Los Angeles returned a superseding indictment, which was unsealed Thursday, charging four additional individuals for their alleged participation in a scheme to submit over 150 fraudulent loan applications seeking over $21.9 million in COVID-19 relief funds guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

Ganell Tubbs, 41, Little Rock, was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison after fraudulently obtaining nearly $2 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans intended to provide relief for small businesses affected by COVID-19.

Federal authorities this morning arrested two employees of the U.S. Postal Service who allegedly abused their positions to purchase and cash Postal money orders with tens of thousands of dollars of unemployment benefits fraudulently obtained with false claims of COVID-related job losses.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland has seized “usaregenermedicals.com,” which purported to sell and distribute REGEN-COV2, an antibody drug cocktail approved for the treatment of COVID-19 virus. However, the website was fraudulent and instead appears to have been used to collect the personal information of individuals visiting the site, in order to use the information for nefarious purposes, including fraud, phishing attacks, and/or deployment of malware. Individuals visiting the site now will see a message that the site has been seized by the federal government and be...

A Florida couple pleaded guilty for their participation in a scheme to file four fraudulent loan applications seeking more than $1.1 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A federal grand jury has charged four Central Ohioans in a narcotics conspiracy involving bulk quantities of fentanyl, crack, cocaine and methamphetamine. Three of the four defendants have also been charged federally in a mail and wire fraud conspiracy related to illegally receiving Pandemic Unemployment Assistance.

A 37-year-old Houston resident is set to appear in federal court for her alleged submission of two Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan applications pursuant to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act

Tulsa– A Broken Arrow man pleaded guilty today for fraudulently applying for a Paycheck Protection Program forgivable loan guaranteed by the Small Business Administration under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.

A Wisconsin man pleaded guilty today for his role in fraudulently obtaining over $1 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

A New York man was charged in a criminal complaint unsealed today for his alleged participation in a scheme to defraud multiple financial institutions by filing bank loan applications that fraudulently sought forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.