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URBANA, Ill. – A Bourbonnais, Illinois, woman, Octavia Renee Murphy, 37, of the 700 block of Double Jack Street, was sentenced on May 19, 2026, to one year in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering.

U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced today that Timothy Wadsworth, 35, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr. to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, which carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The indictment accuses the conspirators of submitting at least 40 fraudulent applications for Paycheck Protection Program loans and Economic Injury Disaster Loans that yielded at least $8.3 million.

A rideshare driver from the Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles has been arrested on a five-count federal indictment charging him with fraudulently obtaining more than $2 million in COVID-19 pandemic business-relief loans on behalf of his nonexistent companies, which he instead used to buy cryptocurrency, the Justice Department announced today.

NEW ORLEANS – Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced that DARRELL HARLAND (“HARLAND”), age 43, of Hammond, Louisiana, was charged on October 15, 2025 in a bill of information for making false statements and for theft of government funds related to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).

Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Maddox sentenced Lakeisha Parker, 33, of Baltimore, Maryland, to three years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, including six months of home detention, for her role in a large, multi-member money laundering conspiracy. Judge Maddox also ordered Parker to pay more than $8 million in restitution.

A 13-count indictment has now been unsealed alleging a scheme to defraud the Small Business Administration and Paycheck Protection Program-affiliated lenders during the COVID-19 pandemic