Shannon T. Hanson Acting United States Attorney for the District of Delaware | U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware
A Wilmington man, Jady Solano, 43, has been sentenced to 80 months in federal prison for leading a fraud scheme that resulted in more than $9.1 million in disaster-relief loans being issued to over 60 businesses nationwide. None of the loans were repaid.
Court documents show that Solano, who worked as a tax preparer in Wilmington, used his expertise to prepare fraudulent applications for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. The PPP was a COVID-19 relief program intended to protect workers’ jobs during the pandemic. Solano submitted applications on behalf of shell companies that had no real operations or employees but claimed substantial payrolls, sometimes exceeding $1 million annually. He also created false documents such as tax forms and bank statements to support these applications.
In total, Solano prepared 62 fraudulent loan applications, which led to more than $9.1 million being wrongfully disbursed. He personally received nearly $1.4 million from the scheme and is required to repay this amount to the federal government under a restitution order from the U.S. District Court.
Seven other individuals have been charged in connection with Solano’s scheme across two charging instruments:
- Shatoya Moss pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 18 months in prison with restitution of $578,133.09.
- Carl Lawrence’s acceptance of a guilty plea is under review by a U.S. District Judge.
- Brigitte Miller-Levy, Amber Baldwin, Marvin Edwards, Anthony McKinzy, and Devlon Porter have all been indicted but are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Julianne Murray, U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware, commented: “The American taxpayers work hard for their money. And we will work hard to ensure that, when taxpayer money is misused—through waste, fraud, or abuse—the wrongdoers are brought to justice. Jady Solano led a nationwide scheme to steal more than $9 million from the federal government. And the funds he stole were meant for an especially important purpose: helping American workers keep their jobs during a deadly pandemic. Solano’s egregious misconduct warranted the substantial prison sentence the Court handed down today. We hope that sentence sends a message to other potential white-collar criminals: in this District, financial crimes simply will not pay. We thank our law enforcement partners at IRS-CI and the FBI for their tireless and terrific work on this important case.”
Yury Kruty, Special Agent in Charge at IRS-Criminal Investigation Philadelphia Field Office said: “Today's sentencing of Jady Solano again emphasizes that the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation will continue their aggressive pursuit of those who use fraudulent methods in an attempt to corrupt our nation's tax system.”
FBI Baltimore Special Agent in Charge William J. DelBagno added: “62 times – over and over and over again – Solano fabricated, embellished and lied to steal millions from the government and ultimately, every taxpaying citizen. Now he will pay for each of those lies with this lengthy sentence,” adding that “The FBI will continue to partner with our fellow agencies to identify and unravel these fraud schemes and bring criminals to justice.”
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin L. Wallace prosecuted the case with agents from IRS Criminal Investigation and FBI Baltimore Field Office’s Wilmington Resident Agency conducting the investigation.
Further information about related court documents can be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware or through PACER by searching Case Nos. 24-cr-91 and 24-cr-109.
