YORK COUNTY, Pa. — A Maryland man has been charged with allegedly committing $11.5 million in COVID-19 pandemic fraud.
According to the United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Creed White, 65, from Freeland, Md., was charged with criminal information with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and engaging in an unlawful monetary transaction.
White reportedly owned Aluminum Alloys MFG, LLC, an aluminum smelting and processing business located in Yoe, York County and owned or controlled 18 other sham corporate entities that didn't have any employees or business operations, according to U.S. Attorney Gerard M. Karam.
White allegedly conspired with others, including his employees, and filed more than 120 applications on behalf of his non-operational businesses for pandemic stimulus funds.
It's alleged that 42 of these loan applications were approved and funded with more than $11.5 million into bank accounts that White controlled.
White and his co-conspirators allegedly filed numerous material misrepresentations about who controlled and operated the nonoperational businesses. These documents reportedly contained false information about the number of employees who worked at the non-operational businesses, fabricated bank records and financial statements, forged and falsified IRS documents, and material misrepresentations regarding wages paid, taxes withheld and paid, gross receipts, and other expenses allegedly incurred by the applicant businesses.
White and his co-conspirators allegedly obtained more than $11.5 million in Payment Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury and Disaster Loan (EIDL) funds through filing fraudulent applications. It is also alleged that White misused the loan proceeds to make unauthorized expenditures for his benefit and the benefit of his businesses.
“Fraudulently obtaining over $11.5 million in federal pandemic relief funds that are meant to provide assistance to eligible small businesses will not be tolerated as shown by today’s charging of Defendant White,” said U.S. Attorney Karam.
The PPP and EIDL programs, both funded by the March 2020 CARES Act, were designed to help small businesses facing financial difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic. PPP funds were offered in forgivable loans, provided that certain criteria were met, including the use of the funds for employee payroll, mortgage interest, lease, and utility expenses. EIDL funds are offered in low-interest rate loans, designated for specific business expenses, such as fixed debts, payroll, and business obligations.
The combined maximum penalty under federal law for wire fraud and money laundering is 30 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form here.
