More than 100 suspects charged for stealing from COVID relief programs by federal prosecutors

Feds announce milestone in COVID fraud crackdown

Evan Axelbank reports

TAMPA, Fla. - Federal prosecutors said more than 100 people have now been charged with stealing from COVID relief programs to the tune of a combined $100 million.

Whether it was a barber shop, an ice cream parlor or a pizza place, if a business was shuttered during the COVID-19 pandemic, the owner could apply for a federal loan of up to $2 million under the Economic Injury Disaster program to pay for things like salaries, rent and utilities.

"I think it's galling," said U.S. Attorney Roger Handberg, "the fact that individuals would take advantage of this unprecedented pandemic to line their own pockets."

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Handberg said one example is Barrett Purvis, 54, of Tampa, who got $500,000 in loans supposedly for his marketing company, only to spend it within two weeks on gambling and credit cards.

"You would think, who would take advantage of a disaster fraud?" said Handberg. "And that's what we see is, we see individuals who take advantage of it, because they see that opportunity."

The U.S. Attorney's Office in Tampa announced on Tuesday that Purvis is one of 109 people who have been prosecuted in Florida's Middle District for abusing six COVID-era relief programs.

Sixty-one are accused of siphoning money from the Paycheck Protection Program. Thirty of them, like Purvis, are accused of tapping the EIDL program, and 22 are accused of filing false claims of unemployment insurance.

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"Those are cases that require a lot of document review and an analysis and interviews," said Handberg.

Prosecutors also won settlements. The Victory Automotive Group in Port Richey was fined $9 million, because they claimed to be a business of fewer than 500 employees. In reality, prosecutors say they had 3,000 employees, thanks to a national network of affiliates.

Their $6.3 million loan had even been forgiven.

"A lot of people needed this money and a lot of people submitted legitimate requests for both as individuals and businesses," said Handberg.

In the 109 cases prosecuted by Handberg's office, recipients are said to have stolen $96 million. Seventy-four have been found guilty, while the other prosecutions are ongoing.

Purvis is serving three years on charges of wire fraud and laundering.

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