Antoine Johnson and Kimberly Maddox were sentenced in a Charlotte court for illegally obtaining bank loans and COVID-19 relief funds valued at approximately $2 million. This was announced by U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson for the Western District of North Carolina. Johnson, aged 49, received a 51-month prison sentence followed by three years of supervised release. Meanwhile, Maddox, aged 44, was sentenced to 12 months in prison with an additional six months of home confinement, followed by three years of supervised release. Both were also ordered to restitute $3,037,868.10.
Robert M. DeWitt, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Charlotte Division, joined U.S. Attorney Ferguson in announcing the sentencing.
Court documents and hearings revealed that the couple, formerly of Huntersville, N.C., and now residing in Georgia, owned and operated Pick Up and Go Moving International, Inc. (PUGMI) and affiliated businesses. Between 2018 and 2023, they fraudulently obtained multiple lines of credit, bank loans, and loans from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, managing to apply for over $3.4 million. They misrepresented PUGMI's financial status and submitted falsified documents, including fake tax returns and financial statements. Notably, Johnson was on federal supervised release for a previous mortgage fraud conviction when these schemes were carried out.
The two had previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud as well as making false statements to financial institutions. They are set to report to the Federal Bureau of Prisons once assigned to a federal facility.
The case was investigated by the FBI, with prosecution led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Caryn Finley and Graham Billings from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte.
Those with information on attempted COVID-19 related fraud can contact the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866‑720‑5721 or submit details through the NCDF Web Complaint Form at www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.