A former worker at a meatpacking plant in Algona, Iowa, has been convicted of fraud related to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Yovany Ciero, 48, from Mason City, Iowa, was found guilty on May 8, 2025, by a jury in federal court in Sioux City. The charges against him include three counts of wire fraud and 23 counts of money laundering among others.
Ciero is originally from Cuba and served as a Sergeant in the Cuban military before crossing into the United States nearly two decades ago. During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, he was working at an Algona meatpacking plant. He and over a hundred other immigrants from Cuba obtained fraudulent PPP loans under false pretenses. They claimed to be self-employed businesspeople with significant earnings when they were actually employed at the meatpacking plant or elsewhere.
Ciero played a significant role as one of six "bundlers" in this scheme. His task involved recruiting individuals for the fraudulent loan applications and passing their information to others who would submit these applications to participating lenders. The evidence showed that over $4 million worth of fraudulent PPP loan applications were submitted resulting in government losses exceeding $2.4 million.
Once participants received their fraudulent funds—typically $20,000 each—Ciero acted as a "funnel" for money laundering activities by collecting fees charged by the scheme's organizers. These fees usually amounted to $3,000 per $20,000 loan.
Additionally, Ciero secured two fraudulent loans for himself and his partner using part of these funds to purchase a semi-truck. He is now the sixth former Iowa meatpacking plant worker convicted in connection with this scheme.
Sentencing will be determined after preparation of a presentence report by United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand. Meanwhile, Ciero remains free on bond but faces potential life imprisonment along with fines exceeding $10 million and supervised release following any prison term.
The prosecution team includes Assistant United States Attorneys Timothy L. Vavricek and Daniel A. Chatham while investigations were conducted by several agencies including Small Business Administration - Office of Inspector General; Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation - Office of Inspector General; Homeland Security Investigations; Federal Bureau of Investigation; Storm Lake Police Department.