United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy | U.S. Department of Justice
A Lawrence man has been charged in Boston's federal court for allegedly obtaining COVID-19 relief funds and Social Security benefits fraudulently. Randolph Dominguez, 57, faces charges of wire fraud and theft of government money. His court appearance is scheduled for a later date.
According to the charging document, Dominguez submitted a loan application in June 2020 for his business, Dominguez SP Interpreters, under the Small Business Administration's Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program. This program was designed to support small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. It is alleged that Dominguez falsely claimed his business had gross revenues of $600,000 in the previous year when it was actually $16,989. As a result, he reportedly received $74,900 in EIDL funds from the SBA in July 2020 and used these funds on non-business expenses.
Additionally, between April 2001 and June 2022, Dominguez allegedly stole approximately $163,642 in Social Security benefits.
The charge of wire fraud carries a potential sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss. The theft charge could result in up to 10 years in prison with similar terms for supervised release and fines. Sentences are determined by a federal district court judge based on U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.
United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and Amy Connelly from the Social Security Administration's Office of Inspector General announced the charges. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Nagelberg is prosecuting this case.
"The details contained in the charging documents are allegations," stated officials involved with the case. "The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law."
