A MIssouri man who submitted nearly $980,000 in fraudulent applications to a pandemic relief loan program has been sentenced to five years and five months in prison.
Terrell Alexander, 46, of St. Louis County, was sentenced March 3 by U.S. District Judge John Ross, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release. Alexander was also ordered to repay $511,600, the amount remaining after more than $200,000 was recovered from the $777,400 in fraudulent loans Alexander received.
“Terrell Alexander misused and fabricated Social Security numbers to defraud CARES Act benefit programs,” Gail Ennis, inspector general for the Social Security Administration, said in the release. “He fraudulently obtained over $770,000 from programs intended to assist businesses and individuals facing economic disadvantages due to the pandemic.”
Alexander submitted 10 fraudulent applications to the Small Business Administration to obtain Economic Injury Disaster Loans and advances, the release reported. The money was intended for businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, some businesses Alexander submitted applications for were fictional or inactive, the release said.
“The applications contained fraudulent information about the size and ownership of the businesses, the number of employees and revenue,” the release said. “Alexander used Social Security numbers belonging to others on applications, including one belonging to a child. He also used a fake name and fraudulent driver’s license on other applications and real people’s names and information, sometimes with their knowledge.”
Ennis said Alexander’s sentence holds him accountable, according to the release.
“My office will continue our work with our law enforcement partners to pursue justice,” Ennis said in the release. “I want to thank the FBI, SBA-OIG for their work in this joint investigation and the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Klocke for prosecuting the case.”
At sentencing, Ross told Alexander he wasn’t “just stealing from the government,” the release reported.
“You were stealing from people who needed this money and didn’t get it because there wasn’t enough,” Ross said in the release.
