A Columbus man and a Clarksdale woman have been convicted of applying for and receiving a fraudulent Economic Injury Disaster Loan related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ramirez Ivy, of Columbus, Mississippi and Felicia Smith of Clarksdale, Mississippi conspired with Lakeith Faulkner, Norman Beckwood and others to each receive $200,000 from the SBA based on fraudulent loan applications.
The loan applications contained fictitious documents and claimed business revenue that did not exist.
A federal jury convicted Ivy and Smith of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection to the fraudulent loan applications as well as one count each of aiding and abetting wire fraud.
Faulkner, a former SBA employee, entered a plea of guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud on December 7, 2022. He was sentenced to serve 62 months imprisonment followed by five years of supervised release on May 24, 2023.
Beckwood entered a plea of guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud on January 17, 2023. He was sentenced to serve 62 months imprisonment followed by five years of supervised release and ordered to pay $10,620,452.26 in restitution to the SBA, forfeit $700,147.74, a 2018 Mercedez Benz C Class and a 2020 Mercedes Benz G63.
This scheme was initially uncovered during a civil investigation, led by the Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Harland Webster. Thirty (30) other individual borrowers have also been charged in connection with the same scheme.
The case is being investigated by the FBI, the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Clayton A. Dabbs and Parker King and Sam Wright of the Northern District of Mississippi are prosecuting the criminal case.
Related Federal Cases
- Teresa Dorenkamp, Wire Fraud, Mason City IA, 2013 · Washington
- Susan Hense Sentenced to 4+ Years for Wire Fraud, Cedar Rapids IA, … · Pennsylvania
- William Frazier Sentenced to 51 Months for Wire Fraud, Midland GA, … · Maryland
- Christopher B. Epps, Bribery and Wire Fraud, Jackson MS, 2023 · Florida
- Orlando James Currey, Conspiracy to Commit Mail and Wire Fraud, IL,… · Illinois
Key Facts
- State: Mississippi
- Category: White Collar Crime|Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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