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Many people found themselves underemployed or unemployed during the pandemic. For example, in April, 2020, unemployment was 14.7%, impacting 23 million people. To address these issues, many state and local governments used funding from the State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF) to create or expand programs that provided job training and connected people to potential job opportunities.

BOSTON – An Easton man was charged yesterday in a superseding indictment for allegedly using Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds to secretly purchase a home in the name of a close relative.

BOSTON – A Lawrence woman pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston to separate fraudulent schemes that targeted banks and the Small Business Administration (SBA).

BOSTON – A Stoughton man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for his role in a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that shipped dozens of parcels containing kilograms of cocaine from Puerto Rico to various addresses throughout Eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The defendant was also sentenced for his role in a bank and wire fraud scheme to fraudulently obtain COVID-19 pandemic relief funds.

BOSTON – A Haverhill man was indicted today for allegedly filing a Massachusetts Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) claim in 2020 for a man who was living in Brazil at the time, and therefore ineligible to receive PUA benefits.

BOSTON – A West Roxbury man pleaded guilty on May 15, 2024 in federal court in Boston to a fraud charge in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain pandemic-related relief funds from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

BOSTON – Bankrupt lender Kabbage, Inc. d/b/a KServicing, has agreed to resolve allegations that it knowingly submitted thousands of false claims for loan forgiveness, loan guarantees, and processing fees to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) as part of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), in violation of the False Claims Act (FCA).

BOSTON – A Haverhill man was arrested and charged today in connection with a Massachusetts Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) claim he filed in 2020 for a man who was living in Brazil and who has since been charged with migrant smuggling, among other offenses.

BOSTON – Two Nigerian men were sentenced today in federal court in Boston for their roles in an expansive money laundering and bank fraud scheme that resulted in millions in losses from pandemic fraud, romance scams and other online scams.

BOSTON – A Lawrence man was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for using stolen identities to fraudulently obtain over $450,000 in Economic Injury Disaster Loan funds from the Small Business Administration (SBA) and to launder the funds.