Miami police officer sentenced for PPP and EIDL loan fraud

MIAMI, Florida — A Miami-Dade Police Department officer has been sentenced to four months in prison for wire fraud related to fraudulent loan applications.

Samuel Harris, a 43-year-old officer with the Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD), was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Robert N. Scola Jr. to four months in prison, followed by four months of home detention, after pleading guilty to wire fraud. Harris, who also owned and operated Oregen Digital, Inc., submitted false applications for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan, an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), and an EIDL advance.

According to the facts admitted at the change of plea hearing on July 3, Harris, working with an associate, submitted a fraudulent PPP loan application on June 29, 2020. The application falsely claimed that Oregen had 10 employees and a monthly payroll of over $50,000. Harris also submitted a fraudulent IRS Form W-3, falsely claiming that Oregen had paid 10 employees over $602,000 in wages during 2019. As a result, Harris obtained a $125,579 PPP loan from a Georgia-based SBA-approved lender.

On June 30, 2020, Harris submitted a false EIDL application to the SBA, claiming that Oregen had gross revenues of over $859,000 and 10 employees for the twelve-month period prior to January 31, 2020. This fraudulent application resulted in Oregen receiving a $10,000 EIDL advance and $149,900 in EIDL loan proceeds.

Judge Scola also ordered Harris to serve three years of supervised release, including four months of home detention, after completing his prison term. Harris was also ordered to make full restitution of $285,479.

The guilty plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI's Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Matthew D. Line of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Miami Field Office, SBA OIG’s Eastern Region Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite, MDPD Interim Director Stephanie V. Daniels, and Inspector General Felix Jimenez of the Miami-Dade County Office of Inspector General (MDC OIG).

The FBI’s Miami Area Corruption Task Force, which includes task force officers from the MDPD and MDC-OIG, investigated the case in conjunction with IRS-CI and SBA OIG. Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward N. Stamm prosecuted the case.

The CARES Act, enacted in March 2020, provided emergency financial assistance to Americans affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, including funding for EIDLs to help small businesses meet financial obligations and operating expenses.