Chicago Man Convicted of Fraudulently Obtaining $2.7M in COVID-19 Relief Funds; A Miami-Dade Police Officer has Pleaded Guilty to a $275,000 COVID-19 Relief Loan Fraud, and other C-Virus related stories

By admin On Jul 8, 2023

Chicago man convicted of fraudulently obtaining $2.7M in COVID-19 relief funds:

A 41-year-old Chicago man has been found guilty of wire fraud for his involvement in a scheme to defraud a government program during the coronavirus pandemic.

Prosecutors say Quamdeen Amuwo obtained over $2.7 million in small business loans and grants under the CARES Act by submitting fraudulent loan applications containing false information on behalf of businesses that he and others allegedly owned.

The Economic Injury Disaster Loan program was intended to help legitimate businesses that were suffering from the economic effects of the pandemic.

Amuwo used the funds he obtained for personal expenses, prosecutors said. —>READ MORE HERE

A Miami-Dade police officer has pleaded guilty to a $275,000 COVID-19 relief loan fraud:

A Miami-Dade police officer revived a dead company to use as the business vessel for a $275,479 COVID-19 relief loan fraud. That’s in Samuel Harris’ admission of facts with Friday’s guilty plea to one count of wire fraud.

Harris, 43, will learn his sentence at 8:30 a.m. Sept. 25 from Federal Judge Robert Scola in Miami’s Wilkie D. Ferguson U.S. Courthouse.

“It infuriates me to learn that one of my officers was arrested for fraud,” Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo “Freddy” Ramirez III said. “The action of this officer not only violated the trust of the community, but took advantage of a system that was in place to help businesses in need due to COVID-19. My officers are held to the highest standards of professionalism, accountability, and ethical conduct. I have complete confidence that the United States Attorney’s Office has conducted a thorough investigation into the matter.”

Miami-Dade police said Harris, who was charged May 3, had been with the agency for four years, 10 months, and worked uniform patrol out of the Kendall District office. Before the year of his fraud, OpenPayrolls.com says, Harris made $71,772 in 2019.