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Anuli Okeke, Hashim Campbell, Charlene Wint, CARES Act Loan Fraud, New York 2024
Two former employees at the New York branch of a major bank and an accountant have been charged with conspiring to commit bank and wire fraud in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain more than $3 million from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program.
According to a complaint unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn, Charlene Wint and Hashim Campbell pleaded guilty on Thursday to conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud before United States Magistrate Judge Roanne L. Mann. Anuli Okeke was arrested this morning and made her initial appearance this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Robert M. Levy, who released the defendant on a $100,000 bond.
The defendants allegedly plotted to steal millions in funds that were specifically earmarked by Congress to provide emergency assistance to small businesses and vulnerable workers during a global pandemic and time of great economic hardship, stated Acting U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis.
‘Together with our law enforcement partners, this Office will vigorously prosecute defendants who shamelessly seek to enrich themselves by taking advantage of government programs that are designed to help those in need during the COVID crisis,’ Kasulis said.
‘Fraudulent schemes exploiting the Paycheck Protection Program are unfortunately all too commonplace,’ said FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Michael J. Driscoll. ‘Okeke, Wint, and Campbell, as charged today, join the ranks of others before them who took it upon themselves to personally and illegally benefit from the protections offered to small businesses during a global pandemic.’
The SBA-OIG’s Special Agent-in-Charge, Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite, stated, ‘Our office will relentlessly investigate fraud schemes and pull them out by the roots.’ The FDIC Inspector General, Jay N. Lerner, added, ‘The defendants in this case – two bank officials at a major financial institution and an accountant – are charged with misusing the bank’s operations for their personal benefit, in order to fraudulently obtain Government-guaranteed loans.’
The investigation was conducted by the FBI, the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s Office of Inspector General, the Office of Inspector General for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, and the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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