United States v. Siedah Eley — U.S. District Court, E.D. La.

Case summary

Siedah Eley pleaded guilty on May 22, 2023 to count 1 of a bill of information in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, No. 2:23-cr-00085-ILRL-KWR, and was adjudicated guilty of conspiracy to commit wire fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 371. The bill of information states that Eley, a resident of Columbia, Maryland, prepared and submitted false Paycheck Protection Program sole-proprietor loan applications through the Blueacorn online portal, each stating the applicant had a sole proprietorship in the beauty industry, and that she inflated income figures and falsely certified the applications. It states she charged some applicants up to approximately $5,000.00 once a loan was funded. On October 25, 2023 the court imposed five years of probation, a $100.00 assessment and $166,656.00 in restitution to the Small Business Administration.

Case at a glance

What was Eley sentenced to?

Five years of probation as to count one of the bill of information, with no term of imprisonment in the judgment. A special condition requires her to participate in an approved cognitive behavioral therapeutic treatment program and to contribute to its cost as far as the probation officer deems her capable.

What does the bill of information describe?

Applications stating that each applicant ran a sole proprietorship in the beauty industry and earned substantial income from it. Where an applicant's beauty-industry income was de minimis, the document states, Eley knowingly inflated it, then certified the application and supporting documents as true when she submitted them.

How much restitution, and to whom?

$166,656.00, payable to the Small Business Administration, alongside a $100.00 special assessment. The judgment's restitution total and the payee line both read $166,656.00.