Patrick Strauss, a 54-year-old resident of Washington D.C., has been sentenced to 48 months of probation, including six months of home confinement and 26 weekends in jail. He was also ordered to pay $304,900 in restitution and an $8,784 fine for his involvement in a conspiracy to fraudulently obtain Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans.
The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin Jr., FBI Special Agent Sean Ryan, D.C. Inspector General Daniel Lucas, and IRS-CI Executive Special Agent Kareem A. Carter.
Strauss pleaded guilty on September 12, 2024, to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Court documents revealed that Strauss owned Powergrid Real Estate LLC and was approached in 2020 about applying for a PPP loan despite knowing the company did not qualify due to having no employees or payroll.
A co-conspirator falsely claimed Powergrid had 16 employees with an average monthly payroll of $132,547.17 on the loan application. Fake federal tax forms and payroll records were also created to support the fraudulent application.
In July 2020, Strauss submitted this application to Capital Bank, which subsequently wired $304,900 into Powergrid’s account. In July 2021, false federal tax returns were prepared by a co-conspirator for loan forgiveness purposes.
The CARES Act provided financial assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic through programs like the PPP, which offered forgivable loans for job retention and certain expenses.
The case was investigated by several agencies including the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John Crabb Jr.
Information about COVID-19 related fraud can be reported via the Department of Justice's National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or through their web complaint form online.