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Seattle Man Sentenced to 8+ Years in Prison for Defrauding COVID-19 Relief Programs
A former Seattle resident, Bryan Alan Sparks, 42, was sentenced to 100 months in prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Sparks defrauded federal COVID-19 benefit programs of more than $1 million.
The scheme took place from March 2020 until at least January 2021, with Sparks and a coconspirator using stolen personal information of more than 50 Washington residents and businesses to apply for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) from the Small Business Administration (SBA) and unemployment benefits from the Washington Employment Security Department (ESD).
Sparks and his coconspirator obtained approximately $521,900 from SBA and $519,700 from ESD. In all, Sparks attempted to obtain at least $1.98 million in federally funded payments.
Sparks used the identities of real people and, in some instances, actual small businesses to open bank and credit accounts. The victims suffered significant harm, with one person seeing his credit score drop 200 points due to the seven credit and bank accounts opened in his name.
Sparks was ordered to pay $1,041,661 in restitution to the government programs. He will be on supervised release for five years following the prison term.
The investigation of this case is led by the Social Security Administration, Office of the Inspector General (SSA-OIG) and U.S. Postal Inspection Service, with partners including the Colusa County Sheriff’s Office (CA), Washington State Employment Security Department, and the Small Business Administration.
Key Facts
- State: Washington
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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