A Richmond man pleaded guilty to defrauding the Paycheck Protection Program of over $1 million in funds intended for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to court documents, from April 2020 to April 2021, Moe Ayemen Mathews, 51, with the assistance of his co-conspirator, submitted at least 38 fraudulent PPP loan applications to financial institutions for businesses the conspirators claimed to own and operate. In their first draw PPP applications, the conspirators falsely certified that the information and supporting documentation provided was true and accurate when, in fact, the applications contained false statements, false certifications, and fabricated tax documents.
For instance, the conspirators repeatedly inflated or fabricated the average monthly payroll and number of employees working for their purported businesses, and they submitted fabricated tax documents to substantiate the false information provided in their PPP applications. Once their fraudulent applications were approved, the conspirators did not use the funds in accordance with the program’s requirements.
Additionally, after their first draw PPP applications were approved and funded, the conspirators submitted fraudulent second draw PPP applications predicated on their fraudulently-obtained first draw PPP loans. When submitting the second draw PPP applications for their purported businesses, the conspirators concealed the fact that they had intentionally and knowingly submitted false and misleading first draw PPP applications.
Once these second-draw applications were approved, the conspirators used the loan proceeds contrary to the program’s requirements.
Mathews is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 7. He faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison.
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