A Lewiston man has been sentenced in U.S. District Court in Bangor for fraudulently obtaining a loan from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Shahied Golden, 30, received a sentence of 12 months and one day in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $24,090.82 in restitution. Golden had pleaded guilty on September 27, 2024.
The sentence will run consecutively to a 27-month state prison term that Golden is serving for illegal possession of a firearm and a probation violation.
Court records reveal that in April 2021, Golden submitted a fraudulent PPP loan application and received approximately $20,833. The application falsely reported his gross income for 2020 and claimed the funds were needed for payroll payments for his business. Additionally, he provided a fraudulent document supporting his application with incorrect income details. The funds were deposited into his personal bank account, quickly withdrawn, and not used for approved expenses.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations.
The Paycheck Protection Program was established as part of COVID-19 pandemic relief efforts by the Small Business Administration (SBA). It offered forgivable loans to small businesses to cover payroll and other expenses during the pandemic. Loans under this program were fully guaranteed by the SBA.