Pair indicted for scheme to obtain $742,500 in COVID relief loans
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A woman from Palos Park and a man from Hazel Crest have been indicted on charges accusing them of scheming to obtain more than $740,000 in COVID relief loans and grants from the federal government.
Te Dora Brown, 43, is facing 13 counts of wire fraud; and Christopher Scott, 43, is facing nine counts of wire fraud, under a federal indictment unsealed on Wednesday.
According to the indictment, beginning around March 30, 2020, the two schemed to submit 15 applications for loans through the federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program – two federal programs aimed at providing financial assistance to small businesses during the pandemic.
Brown and Scott are accused of creating several fictitious businesses – including Little Shepherd's Academy, Inc.; Little Shepherd's Beginners, Inc.; EZ Link Golf LLC; Naper Montessori Academy, Inc.; and OLG Financing, Inc., and then submitting applications for PPP and EIDL loans.
The two also opened bank accounts for those fake businesses, and submitted falsified IRS documents to substantiate fictitious payrolls for those businesses, in order to obtain a total of $465,500 in PPP loans and $277,000 in EIDL loans, which they then used for their own personal gain.
Brown and Scott both face up to 20 years in prison for each count of wire fraud if convicted.