Owasso Man Convicted in $995K PPP Loan Fraud Scheme

Olusola Ojo, a 42-year-old man from Owasso, Oklahoma, was convicted Thursday by a federal jury on multiple felony counts after orchestrating a scheme to steal nearly $1 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans meant for struggling small businesses during the pandemic.

Ojo, also known as Sam Ojo, was found guilty of bank fraud conspiracy, two counts of bank fraud, and aggravated identity theft. He created 12 fake businesses with two coconspirators—Ibanga Etuk, 41, and Teosha Etuk, 33—and submitted fraudulent loan applications to more than ten banks. The trio sought a total of $5,430,585 and successfully obtained $995,385 in taxpayer-funded relief.

Between April 20 and April 29, 2020, Ojo applied for a $300,000 loan from Frontier State Bank under the name Quicksold Market, Inc., falsifying employee counts, payroll expenses, tax payments, and ownership details. Days later, from May 8 to May 11, he submitted another false application to Stride Bank for $150,000 under the name Inspired Group LLC. Multiple applications were submitted for the same shell companies—none disclosed to the banks.

To further deceive lenders, Ojo used another person’s identity on fabricated payroll records. The scheme relied on layers of lies: fake relationships between business owners, inflated payrolls, and phantom tax filings—all designed to exploit a program created to save real businesses during a national emergency.

Acting U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson confirmed Ojo was taken into custody following the verdict. “Criminals should understand that diverting taxpayer money meant to help struggling small businesses survive during the pandemic will be fully investigated and prosecuted,” Johnson said. Federal agents from the FBI, SBA, and Federal Reserve were instrumental in unraveling the fraud.

Ibanga Etuk pleaded guilty and was sentenced to four years in federal prison—two for bank fraud, two for aggravated identity theft—and ordered to pay $168,000 in restitution to Chickasaw Community Bank. Teosha Etuk, 33, admitted to one count of bank fraud and received one year and a day in prison, five years supervised release, and $150,000 in restitution to First Liberty Bank. Ojo is set for sentencing on April 1, 2022.

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