A Utah businessman, Marcelo Federico Torre, has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for fraudulently obtaining $628,307 through a COVID-19 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan. Torre, aged 42 and from Draper, Utah, submitted a false loan application on behalf of his company, Offerworks Inc., during April and May 2021.
The PPP loans were intended to help small businesses cover expenses like payroll and rent during the pandemic. Torre's fraudulent application included claims that Offerworks Inc. was operational as of February 15, 2020, employed 37 people, and had an average monthly payroll of $251,323 in 2020. These statements were found to be false.
Senior U.S. District Court Judge Clark Waddoups also sentenced Torre to three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay restitution equal to the amount he fraudulently obtained. Additionally, he forfeited a money judgment for the same sum.
Acting U.S. Attorney Felice John Viti commented on the case: "The amount of money Mr. Torre stole from the U.S. government and taxpayers...is significant and his fraud will not go unpunished." Viti expressed hope that this sentence would deter similar crimes against government aid programs.
The investigation involved multiple agencies including the U.S. Postal Investigation Service and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant United States Attorney Todd C. Bouton prosecuted the case.
The Fraud Section leads efforts against schemes exploiting the PPP under the CARES Act. Since its inception, over 150 defendants have been prosecuted in more than 95 cases with over $75 million seized from fraudulent activities related to PPP funds.
