Leah B. Foley United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts | Department of Justice
Four individuals have been charged in connection with an alleged scheme to fraudulently obtain approximately $7 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts announced that Sniders Jean-Jacques, 38, of Miami; Lorne Johnson, 38, of Boston; Tanya Pierre, 28, of Miami; and Ashley Spike, 31, of Miramar, Florida were indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
According to prosecutors, Jean-Jacques and Pierre were arrested and appeared in federal court in Miami. Johnson was arrested and appeared in federal court in Boston. Spike was arrested and appeared in federal court in Fort Lauderdale. All four are scheduled to appear later before a federal judge in Boston.
Charging documents allege that starting in March 2021, the defendants submitted fraudulent PPP loan applications on behalf of borrowers who did not qualify for such loans. The indictment states that they claimed these borrowers operated eligible businesses and created fake tax forms to support their claims. In exchange for securing the loans, it is alleged that the group collected up to 30 percent of the loan proceeds as a fee.
Prosecutors also allege that some borrowers paid kickbacks equal to about 30 percent of their loan amounts back to Jean-Jacques, Johnson, Pierre, Spike and others involved.
Additionally, Jean-Jacques and Pierre face charges under a separate indictment alleging conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud related to mortgage loans and apartment leases.
The charge carries a potential sentence of up to 20 years in prison along with three years supervised release and fines up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the scheme. Sentences will be determined by a federal district court judge according to U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley stated: “On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud.” She added: “The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts.” For more details about this response visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Authorities encourage anyone with information regarding attempted COVID-19 relief fraud schemes or allegations involving disaster relief funds misuse report them through the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via its online complaint form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
Officials remind that all details outlined remain allegations at this stage; those charged are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt.
