Disbarred attorney Douglas Raymond Arntsen has been handed a nine-year prison sentence for masterminding a scheme to defraud the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) out of over $1.4 million in COVID-19 relief loans.
According to officials, Arntsen, who was disbarred and had previously faced legal trouble for theft, operated a fraudulent loan application through the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Program during the pandemic. He coerced co-conspirators into providing personal information which he used to submit false claims of substantial business revenue.
Arntsen directed his co-conspirators to lie to the SBA and recruit more participants, leading to a total of over $1.4 million in fraudulent loans obtained, along with attempts for hundreds of thousands more. His previous conviction for embezzling over $10 million from escrow accounts at Crowell & Moring was mentioned as a recidivist offense.
Additionally sentenced to three years of supervised release and restitution in the amount of $1,430,200, Arntsen’s actions were condemned by U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, who highlighted the diligent work of law enforcement agencies involved in bringing him to justice.
The case was handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit with Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Sowlati leading the prosecution.
Arntsen, 45, from Staten Island, New York, now faces a long road ahead for his deceitful exploitation of government relief programs during one of the nation’s most desperate times.
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Key Facts
- State: New York
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes|Public Corruption|White Collar Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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