Beckley man sentenced for COVID-19 relief fraud

BECKLEY, WV (WVNS) — A Raleigh County man was sentenced for COVID-19 relief fraud on October 25, 2024.

According to a press release, 51-year-old Mark William Bailey, of Beckley, was sentenced to five years of parole, one year on house arrest, and was ordered to pay $451,237.51 in restitution for theft of government monies.

Bailey confessed to stealing an estimated $451,237.51 from the Small Business Administration (SBA) in COVID-19 relief loans under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Bailey paid the restitution in full and an additional $451,237.98 as a civil penalty to settle the allegations from the False Claims Act.

According to court documents, on July 10, 2020, Bailey was the owner and president of RMR Delivery Service Inc. when he received an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) for approximately $150,000. The program was created from the CARES Act for qualifying small businesses that experienced immense financial challenges due to the pandemic.

EIDL funds can only be used for certain expenses, including paying fixed business debts, accounts payable, payroll, and other related expenses that were affected by the pandemic.

Bailey attempted to get two modifications to the EIDL he received by increasing the amount from $150,000 to $500,000, and then to approximately $2 million. To get each increased amount, Bailey assured that RMR Delivery Service Inc. would use the loan proceeds only as working capital to ease the financial difficulties brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bailey also confessed to fraudulently using an estimated $403,768.04 of the loan funds for his personal benefit from March 1, 2022 to October 20, 2022, according to the press release. The personal use of funds includes buying a garage and personal car with the funds received from the relief program.

Around the period of April 2020, Bailey applied and received a loan of $110,032 from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which was made by the CARES Act for eligible small businesses. PPP loans were intended for job retention and other business expenses. Bailey confessed to misusing approximately $47,469.47 of the funds to pay his mortgage around June 4, 2020.

Mr. Bailey was required to pay not only full restitution but also an equally substantial civil penalty, which represents another tool to bring to justice those who stole COVID-19 relief funds during a national emergency. The outcome in this case sends a message to others throughout West Virginia and the United States who are or were engaged in pandemic relief fraud schemes that the consequences for such actions are serious.

United States Attorney Will Thompson

Thompson made the announcement and thanked the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Office of Inspector General (NASA OIG), the United States Secret Service, the West Virginia State Police-Bureau of Criminal Investigations (BCI) and the West Virginia State Auditor’s Office (WVSAO) Public Integrity and Fraud Unit (PIFU) for their work on the case.

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