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A Portage County man who orchestrated a financial conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic has been sentenced to prison.

Fort Myers, FL – U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell has sentenced Lester John Parker, Jr. (55, Lehigh Acres) to ten years and one month in federal prison for his role in a multi-million-dollar COVID-19 relief fraud scheme. Parker pleaded guilty on July 9, 2025, to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, access device fraud, and aggravated identity theft.

Briauna Adams, 29, Kansas City, Mo., woman sentenced to 11 years imprisonment for her leadership role in two cases that resulted in more than $500,000 in fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans being issued under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, and more than $3,000,000 in stolen Treasury checks.

Greenbelt, Maryland – District Judge Deborah L. Boardman sentenced Jemel Lyles, 43, of Washington, DC, to 66 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered him to pay $281,947 in restitution, for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. In his guilty plea, Lyles admitted to submitting applications for and receiving funds from six fraudulent CARES Act loans. Additionally, Lyles violated his supervised release from a previous federal conviction for obstruction of an audit.

Ten individuals face federal charges stemming from a fraud and money laundering operation that targeted government loan programs offered by the U.S. Small Business Administration, including the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program and Paycheck Protection Program. In addition, two of the defendants were charged with laundering the proceeds of a fraudulent unemployment insurance scheme.

A former Wells Fargo & Co. banker and his brother have been arrested on an eight-count federal grand jury indictment alleging they schemed to fraudulently obtain more than $2.7 million in taxpayer-funded COVID-19 relief funds and federally-guaranteed small business loans, including by submitting applications using the stolen identities of developmentally disabled persons who lived in long-term care facilities, the Justice Department announced today.

WILMINGTON, N.C. – Darnell William King, age 42, was sentenced to 70 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release following his plea in May to conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. According to the indictment and information presented in court, King entered into separate conspiracies to commit Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) fraud and to use stolen identities to obtain personal lines of credit from various private lenders in and around Wake County. King was also ordered to pay restitution to the...

Greenbelt, Maryland – Jemel Lyles, 43, of Washington, DC, has pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft charges in federal court. In his guilty plea, Lyles admitted to submitting applications for and receiving funds from six fraudulent CARES Act loans.

DENVER – The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announces that Adepoju Babatunde Salako, 32, of Pennsylvania, has been charged with six counts of wire fraud; one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud; one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering; and four counts of aggravated identity theft.

PROVIDENCE – Four Florida residents convicted in U.S. District Court in Rhode Island for executing one of the largest schemes in the country to defraud Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act programs, including in Rhode Island, have been sentenced to federal prison, announced Acting United States Attorney Sara Miron Bloom.