Jordan C. Larkins, PPP Loan Fraud, New Jersey 2024

State: New Jersey
Category: Fraud &#038; Financial Crimes
Source: <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-nj/pr/middlesex-county-man-charged-13-million-paycheck-protection-program-and-economic-injury" style="color:#cc0000;" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">DOJ Press Release ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Â Ã¢â‚¬â€

Newark, NJ – A Middlesex County man has been arrested and charged with fraudulently obtaining $1.3 million in federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL).

Jordan C. Larkins, 31, of Edison, New Jersey, is accused of submitting three fraudulent PPP loan applications to two different lenders on behalf of three purported businesses and a total of seven EIDL applications to the Small Business Association (SBA) on behalf of four purported businesses.

Larkins allegedly used bogus federal tax return documentation, fabricated bank statements, and fabricated identities of certain individuals listed on the applications to deceive the lenders and the SBA. He also allegedly fabricated driver’s licenses of purported applicants.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which was enacted on March 29, 2020, provided emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering from the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The PPP allowed qualifying small businesses to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of 1 percent.

Larkins’s three counts of bank fraud each carry a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The seven counts of wire fraud each carry a maximum penalty of 20 years, and the two counts of money laundering each carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig credited postal inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Newark Division, with the investigation leading to the charges. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Fatime Meka Cano of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Government Fraud Unit in Newark.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the National Center for Disaster Fraud at 1-866-720-5721 or via email at disaster@leo.gov.

Related Federal Cases