Tracy Hardy, a 52-year-old Philadelphia resident, pleaded guilty to four counts of wire fraud and one count of making a false claim upon the United States in federal court on Thursday. The plea was entered before United States District Judge Harvey Bartle III.
According to information presented in court, Hardy engaged in two separate fraudulent schemes. The first involved defrauding the Small Business Administration (SBA) and several SBA-approved lenders through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, both created under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act in March 2020.
Hardy owned several businesses in Philadelphia, including Lou & Choo Enterprises, Inc., Hardy & Hardy Holdings, LLC, and Monroe Press, Inc. He collaborated with another individual who assisted applicants in securing disaster-related loans using falsified financial data. "Hardy provided Person #1 with background and financial information related to his companies, and Person #1 prepared and submitted to the lenders the loan applications, falsely inflating financial figures relating to the operations of the companies applying for the loans and drafting false documents to support the inflated figures."
The government said Hardy secured over $2 million in pandemic relief funds by submitting false statements about employee wages, business revenues, ownership details, and intended use of PPP funds. He also supplied fake tax documents and payroll summaries as part of his loan applications.
In a separate scheme between January 2019 and June 2019, Hardy was involved in defrauding District 1199C—the local chapter of the National Union of Hospital and Healthcare Employees—by manipulating bids for a construction project at its union hall on Locust Street in Philadelphia.
Hardy was co-owner of Manayunk Construction & Development Corporation. In early 2019 he sent an initial bid for renovation work at District 1199C’s bar area. Subsequently, he submitted an inflated second bid from Manayunk Construction along with two fabricated bids from other supposed companies. "The second bid from Manayunk Construction was fraudulently inflated by at least $45,000, with the bid accounting for some additional work to be done, as well as generating tens of thousands of dollars in proceeds for the benefit of the defendant and Person #5." His company ultimately won the contract after submitting what appeared to be the lowest bid among three options—all orchestrated by Hardy—and received payment exceeding $150,000.
The investigation was led by the FBI with assistance from the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. Assistant United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen is prosecuting the case.
