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Tampa, FL – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the results achieved by the Middle District of Florida’s efforts to combat fraud related to COVID-19. Those efforts have included complementary actions by the United States Attorney’s Office’s (USAO-MDFL) Criminal, Asset Recovery, Appellate, and Civil Divisions, along with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.

James McAuliffe filed false claims for UI benefits using others’ personal identifying information without their knowledge and consent. He was sentenced to.60 months and ordered to pay $203,616 in restitution.

On Jan. 12, Eric Dean Sheppard, 55, of Bal Harbour, Florida, was convicted for submitting fraudulent COVID-19 relief loan applications and aggravated identity theft.

U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman sentenced Denish Sahadevan, a/k/a “Danny Devan,” age 32, of Potomac, Maryland, today to three years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and money laundering, relating to his scheme to defraud lenders and the Small Business Administration (“SBA”) of more than $1.2 million in Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) loans and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (“EIDL”). Judge Boardman also ordered that Sahadevan will forfeit the cash and Bitcoin seized during a search of his residence on...

This report presents the results of our verification inspection of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) corrective actions for the five recommendations from the Office of Inspector General (OIG) evaluation report SBA’s Handling of Identity Theft in the COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program (Report 21-15).We initiated this verification inspection to determine whether the closed recommendations were fully implemented or if further corrective actions were needed. Accordingly, our objective was to determine the effectiveness of the corrective actions SBA implemented to 1)...

Tacoma – One of two Nigerian citizens who resided in Canada, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft for defrauding pandemic unemployment benefit programs in multiple states, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman.

Austin Martin Siampwizi, who laundered money procured from fraudulent unemployment claims filed during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, has pleaded guilty to a charge of money laundering conspiracy.

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and James Smith, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the unsealing of an Indictment today charging DOUGLAS RAYMOND ARNTSEN with masterminding a fraudulent scheme to obtain more than $1.3 million in government-funded loans designed to provide relief to small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and James Smith, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the unsealing of an Indictment today charging DOUGLAS RAYMOND ARNTSEN with masterminding a fraudulent scheme to obtain more than $1.3 million in government-funded loans designed to provide relief to small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.