Angela Castillo, Wire Fraud, Pennsylvania 2020

SCRANTON – A Luzerne County woman is facing federal charges for allegedly defrauding the Small Business Administration (SBA) out of nearly $163,000 in COVID-19 relief funds.

Angela Castillo, 38, of Freeland, PA, was charged yesterday in a criminal Information with wire fraud, according to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

Between June 2020 and September 2020, Castillo submitted to the SBA no fewer than forty Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) applications, all of which contained material misrepresentations, the U.S. Attorney’s Office alleges. The applications were submitted on behalf of other individuals and in exchange for payment, the office claims.

The SBA paid out approximately $163,000.00 in COVID-19 relief funds to individuals, none of whom actually owned a qualifying small business, and who therefore were not entitled to receive such funds under the EIDL loan program.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffery St John is prosecuting the case.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The task force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors.

Castillo is facing a maximum penalty of 20 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine if convicted, according to federal law.

Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

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