This year, guilty pleas and convictions involving COVID relief fund fraud are rolling in from unexpected culprits - Florida's law enforcement. No profession is immune from greed and these officers crossed the line and broke trust.
The allure of trillions of dollars tested the integrity of many - and temptation prevailed too often.
“It is an unprecedented amount of fraud.” Mike Galdo, U.S. Justice Department acting director COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement
February 13, 2024:
Former Miami Police Department (MPD) Public Service Aide Kendra Carter, 35, pled guilty to wire fraud connected to her fraudulent application seeking a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan.
During her full-time employment at MPD, Carter admitted to submitting a fraudulent PPP loan application. She falsely claimed that in 2019 she was the sole proprietor of a "hair-braiding" business with a gross income of more than $1 million.
Carter's application included a fraudulent IRS Form 1040, Schedule C, for the 2019 tax year, falsely reflecting her business had a gross income of $1,100,000. Carter obtained a $20,833 PPP loan from an SBA-approved PPP lender as a result of the fraudulent application.
March 6, 2024:
Former Miami Police Department Police (MPD) Staffing Specialist Sheana Haslem, 38, pled guilty to wire fraud connected to her fraudulent applications for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan and an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) advance.
During her full-time employment at MPD, Haslam obtained a $10,000 advance from the Small Business Administration after making a fraudulent application as an independent contractor and the 100% owner of a hair and nail salon business operating under her name. The application falsely certified that for the 12 months before January 31, 2020, Haslem’s business had gross revenues of approximately $89,993 and 15 employees.
In addition, Haslem submitted a fraudulent PPP loan application claiming to be an independent contractor operating a security officer with the business' average monthly payroll totaling $8,333. Haslem submitted a fraudulent IRS Form 1040, Schedule C, for tax year 2019, claiming her security officer business had a gross income of $102,874 with no expenses. The fraudulent application resulted in Haslem receiving a $20,832 PPP loan from an SBA-approved lender.
May 29, 2024:
Former Broward Sheriff's Office Deputy Stephanie Diane Smith, 54, of Sunrise, Florida, received a 7-month prison sentence for participating in a COVID-19 relief fraud scheme.
During her employment as a deputy sheriff with Broward County Sheriff's Office, Smith applied for PPP loans using false gross income data for two solely owned businesses, Children 1st Basketball Training and Agape Smith Vending. The fraudulent application yielded Smith’s unlawful receipt of $31,108.
Smith was found guilty of two counts of wire fraud. Her sentence includes 7 months in prison, 3 years supervised release following imprisonment, restitution of $31,108, a $2,000 fine, and forfeiture.
June 5, 2024:
Former Broward Sheriff's Office Deputy Alexandra Acosta, 38, of Tamarac, Florida, was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the Small Business Administration (SBA), two counts of false statements to the SBA, and wire fraud, all concerning her COVID-19 relief fraud scheme.
During her employment as a deputy sheriff in Broward's Sheriff's Office (BSO), and the first and only female BSO SWAT team member, Acosta conspired with Vilsaint St Louis, a tax preparer, to fraudulently receive monies in an application for PPP.
Acosta provided materially false 2019 income information on her application as a sole proprietor doing business as a realtor. Included with the application were two falsified IRS tax forms.
After fraudulently obtaining the PPP loan, Acosta sought and received forgiveness to the tune of more than $20,000 in principal and interest.
Sentencing is scheduled for August 27, 2024. Acosta faces two years in prison for each of her false statement convictions, five years for conspiracy, and up to 20 years for wire fraud.
Acosta's tax preparer, St Louis, was sentenced on May 14, 2024 after pleading guilty. He received one year of probation, a $5,000 fine, and 100 hours of community service.
COVID Fraud
COVID relief aid was intended to combat a far-reaching pandemic and stabilize the economy. Where this is money, there are thieves. Billions of federal dollars were fraudulently grabbed, wasted, or misspent.
The United States government disbursed $4.2 trillion in COVID relief aid and estimates of roughly 10% of that amount was lost. Calculations indicate that $280 billion went to fraudsters.
That number is certain to grow as investigators dig deeper into thousands of potential schemes.
Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF)
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
Additional details regarding the reviewed cases can be found on the District Court for the Southern District of Florida website:
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