A Maryland man, Andra Shirone Thompson, has pleaded guilty to charges of defrauding Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act loan programs and commercial equipment financing companies. Thompson admitted to his involvement in a scheme that involved submitting fraudulent applications for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans for companies he controlled, resulting in a fraudulent gain of $716,375.
Furthermore, Thompson was part of a conspiracy that defrauded equipment financing companies by submitting false invoices for the sale of computer servers and related equipment. This scheme led to approximately $813,362 in fraudulently induced lending. Thompson and his co-conspirators would receive a portion of the loan proceeds, while the rest was kept by them.
Thompson pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and could face a maximum penalty of five years in prison on each count. The sentencing date has not been set yet, and a federal district court judge will determine the sentence after considering various factors.
The announcement of Thompson's guilty plea was made by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole Argentieri, U.S. Attorney Erek Barron for the District of Maryland, Special Agent in Charge Kareem Carter of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Washington, D.C., Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey Pittano of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General (FDIC-OIG), Mid-Atlantic Region, and Assistant Director Michael D. Nordwall of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division.
The case is being investigated by IRS-CI, FDIC-OIG, the Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General, and the FBI. Trial Attorney David A. Peters of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Wenner for the District of Maryland are prosecuting the case.