A Mansfield businesswoman has been sentenced to over seven years in federal prison for her involvement in a scheme to fraudulently obtain approximately $8.5 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, Leigha Simonton.
Tamara Starks, aged 42, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in September 2024. On Thursday, she received an 86-month prison sentence from U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman and was ordered to pay restitution amounting to $4,476,523.73.
Court documents reveal that between May 2020 and May 2021, Starks orchestrated a plan to deceive the PPP program using false pretenses. She submitted fraudulent loan applications with inaccurate payroll data and tax documentation for businesses owned by her and her husband. Additionally, she secured PPP loans for other individuals.
Starks and her associates filed over 100 PPP loan applications totaling about $8.5 million and successfully obtained $4.5 million in funds. After receiving the loans, Starks instructed recipients to establish fake payrolls through third-party vendors to give the appearance of legitimate use of funds. In many instances, she collected money back from these "employees" and used the funds for personal expenses. Recipients also paid Starks a portion of the loan proceeds as a "fee" for securing the loans.
The investigation was conducted by the Dallas Field Offices of FDIC-OIG, IRS-Criminal Investigation, and SSA-OIG. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Dimitri Rocha and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Nashonme Johnson.
The CARES Act, enacted on March 29, 2020, aimed to provide financial assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic through measures such as forgivable loans under the PPP for small businesses' job retention and other expenses.
Individuals with information regarding attempted COVID-19 related fraud can report it via the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or through their online complaint form.