BECKLEY, W.Va. – Mark William Bailey, 51, of Beckley, is facing the consequences for a brazen scheme to siphon off COVID-19 relief funds for personal gain. Bailey was sentenced Friday, October 25, 2024, to five years of federal probation, with the first year served under home detention. Beyond the probationary sentence, he’s been slapped with a hefty $902,475.49 bill to cover restitution and a civil penalty, effectively clawing back every dime he illegally obtained.
The fraud centered around loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. In July 2020, Bailey, then the sole owner and president of RMR Delivery Service Inc., secured an initial Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) for $150,000. He wasn’t content with that. Through a series of manipulative requests, he ballooned the loan amount first to $500,000, and then to a staggering $2 million, all while falsely certifying the funds would be used for legitimate business expenses related to the pandemic. Court documents reveal Bailey diverted approximately $403,768.04 for personal use between March 2022 and October 2022 – a shopping spree funded by taxpayer dollars. He used the stolen funds to purchase a garage and a personal vehicle.
The EIDL wasn’t Bailey’s only target. He also snagged a $110,032 loan through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) in April 2020, another CARES Act initiative designed to keep workers on payroll. But instead of supporting jobs, Bailey siphoned off $47,469.47 to pay his personal mortgage in June 2020, treating the federal program like a personal piggy bank. The scale of his deception is frankly staggering.
“Mr. Bailey was required to pay not only full restitution but also an equally substantial civil penalty, which represents another tool to bring to justice those who stole COVID-19 relief funds during a national emergency,” stated United States Attorney Will Thompson. Thompson’s words aren’t just rhetoric; they’re a warning shot to anyone considering exploiting a crisis for personal profit. The message is clear: federal investigators *will* track down these schemes and hold perpetrators accountable.
The investigation was a multi-agency effort, with contributions from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Office of Inspector General (NASA OIG), the U.S. Secret Service, the West Virginia State Police-Bureau of Criminal Investigations (BCI), and the West Virginia State Auditor’s Office (WVSAO) Public Integrity and Fraud Unit (PIFU). NASA OIG is a key player in the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) Fraud Task Force, a consortium of 20 Inspectors General dedicated to uncovering fraud, waste, and abuse in the more than $5 trillion in COVID-19 spending.
This case was bolstered by the PRAC’s Pandemic Analytics Center of Excellence, which employs advanced data analysis to identify fraudulent activity. The combined resources and expertise of these agencies ensured Bailey’s scheme didn’t go unnoticed, and ultimately, brought him to justice. The total restitution and civil penalty of $902,475.49 is a significant victory for accountability in the wake of widespread pandemic-related fraud, and a reminder that stealing from federal programs carries severe consequences.
Related Federal Cases
- Bradley Temple, COVID-19 Relief Money Embezzlement, Wheeling WV, 2023 · Virginia
- Bradley Temple Embezzled COVID Relief Funds, Wheeling WV, 2023 · Virginia
- Jeffrey Phares, Cemetery Fraud, West Virginia, 2023 · Virginia
- Jeffrey Phares, Wire Fraud Scheme, Fayetteville WV, 2023 · Virginia
- Jeffrey Phares, Wire Fraud, WHEELING WV, 2023 · Virginia
Key Facts
- Agency: U.S. Secret Service
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Press Release
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