West Virginia Official Accused of Approving $34M in COVID-19 Payments Without Verifying Them; Indiana Man Receives Federal Sentence for Conspiring to Steal Nearly $700,000 from Businesses and COVID-19 Programs, and other C-Virus related stories
West Virginia official accused of approving $34M in COVID-19 payments without verifying them:
A federal grand jury has indicted a West Virginia state health office manager on charges that he approved more than $34 million in coronavirus pandemic relief payments to a private firm without verifying that the vendor provided goods and services it was under contract to deliver.
The indictment filed Tuesday in federal court in Charleston charges Timothy Priddy with making false statements to federal agents in August 2022 and in grand jury testimony the following month about the payments.
Gov. Jim Justice told reporters Thursday that Priddy has been suspended from his job, “and we’ll have to let the courts make a decision on his fate, that’s for sure.”
Priddy held various manager positions with the state Bureau for Public Health’s Center for Threat Preparedness. He was promoted to deputy director in March 2021 and to director in January 2022, according to the indictment.
An email left for Priddy was returned with a message that “As of October 17, 2023 I am no longer with the DHHR Center for Threat Preparedness.” It wasn’t immediately clear whether Priddy has an attorney who could comment on the charges.
Prosecutors said the federal investigation was trying to determine whether one or more vendors providing COVID-19 tests and mitigation services to the state overbilled or otherwise received payment from federal funds disbursed through the state’s main health agency, the Department of Health and Human Resources. —>READ MORE HERE
Indiana man receives federal sentence for conspiring to steal nearly $700,000 from businesses and COVID-19 programs:
An Indiana man is headed to federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to steal from businesses and COVID-19 programs.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office Southern District of Indiana, 73-year-old Robert Hall of Bloomington conspired with others to defraud multiple businesses through email schemes from 2019 to 2020.
During the pandemic, Hall tried to take advantage of the COVID-19 loan and unemployment programs, working to defraud multiple states.
Documents also state Hall worked with his co-conspirators to launder stolen funds through his bank accounts
In September 2019, an employee of a business received a fake email purporting to be a recognized vendor that the business previously worked with. They said the purported vendor explained that due to an audit involving its’ primary bank account, future payments should be made to a different account. Authorities said that account belonged to Hall under the guise of an electric company. The fake email caused the business to “unknowingly” transfer more than $113,000 into Hall’s personal account.
Another example was in July 2020 after the CARES Act was passed. Authorities said fake documents were submitted to the Small Business Administration for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan using stolen identities. The loan checks were deposited into an account which Hall controlled. Documents say Hall conducted similar schemes when his co-conspirators applied for three Injury Disaster Loans using stolen identities of a person and two businesses, which also went into Hall’s personal accounts. —>READ MORE HERE
Follow links below to relevant/related stories and resources:
Cape Coral man, 44, sentenced to 2 years in federal prison for COVID fraud
COVID-19 United States Cases by County
USA TODAY: Coronavirus Updates
YAHOO NEWS: Coronavirus Live Updates
NEW YORK POST: Coronavirus The Latest
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