In Shreveport, Louisiana, there was a gang that referred to themselves as Step or Die. Twenty-four of the gang members stepped up to fraudulently file over $2,200,000 in CARES Act forgivable loans. These defendants purported to own businesses providing a wide range of services including, freight, trucking, towing, painting, lawn care, t-shirt printing, day care, temporary employment placement, cosmetology, beauty supplies, catering, car washing, and retail clothing…along with pig and cattle farming. It sounds like a conglomerate, with the gang being the parent company.
In their individual applications, the members either reported using fake business credentials or grossly overstating the amount of revenue their actual businesses earned so that they would qualify for Paycheck Protection Program loans or Economic Injury Disaster Loans. Either way, none of these defendants qualified because they were all linked to illegal gang activity and acts of violent crime such as murder, attempted murder, and violations of state and federal firearm laws, obviously disqualifiers when it came to CARES Act loans. Of the 72 applications that were filed, only 31 were approved and funded for $600,000 in forgivable loans.
On November 21, 2024, the last of the 24 defendants were sentenced.
Great job by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with this case.
Today’s Fraud of The Day is based on article “24 gang members receive federal prison sentences for PPP Loan fraud” published by The Daily Iberian on November 21, 2024.
States Attorney Brandon B. Brown announces the sentencing of 24 defendants in a case involving a scheme by these defendants to defraud the United States by fraudulently applying for and receiving relief through the Payment Protection Program (“PPP”) provided by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act.
In March 2020 Congress enacted the CARES Act which was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who were suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
