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PROVIDENCE - A Massachusetts man who became the first person in the country charged with fraudulently seeking forgivable pandemic relief small business loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, and who faked suicide shortly after his arrest resulting in a nationwide search for him by the U.S. Marshals Service, was sentenced today to 56 months in federal prison, announced Acting United States Attorney Richard B. Myrus.

The Office of Inspector General examined Emergency EIDL grants to sole proprietors and independent contractors from March 29, 2020, until the funds were exhausted just 14 weeks later on July 10. We set out to determine whether the agency complied with its internal policy that set Emergency EIDL grants at $1,000 per employee up to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act mandated maximum amount of $10,000.Using SBA’s data, we found SBA provided $4.5 billion more in Emergency EIDL grants to sole proprietors and independent contractors than they were entitled to receive...

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ohio’s unemployment system was flooded with new claims. Our audit found that the unemployment compensation system was not prepared for the surge in unemployment applications resulting from the pandemic. While limited human resources played a role, antiquated systems and lack of business intelligence made problems worse.