Court filing
Indictment — United States v. Tubbs (Dkt. 3, E.D. Ark.)
Summary
This indictment, filed July 7, 2020 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, charges Ganell Tubbs in five counts. Counts 1 and 2 charge defrauding a financial institution under 18 U.S.C. § 1344(1); Counts 3 and 4 charge false statements under § 1014; Count 5 charges a monetary transaction over $10,000 under § 1957. The grand jury alleges that a PPP application to Celtic Bank, processed by BlueVine, stated that Suga Girl Customs, LLC had 210 employees and an average monthly payroll of $607,555, and that the company received a $1,518,887 loan. A second application to Cross River Bank, processed by Kabbage, for The Little Piglet Soap Company, LLC stated 36 employees and brought a $414,375 loan. Count 5 concerns a $150,000 transfer on May 13, 2020, and the indictment ends with two forfeiture allegations.
Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used
Filed July 7, 2020 in Ganell Tubbs; one of 2 filings from this case.
Record facts
| Court | U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas |
|---|---|
| Filed | 2020-07-07 |
Cite this document
“Indictment — United States v. Tubbs (Dkt. 3, E.D. Ark.).”
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, No. 4:20-cr-00193, Doc. 3, filed 2020-07-07. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/court-filings/us-v-ganell-tubbs/2020-07-07-indictment-dkt-3/
, SHA-256 806739c671cde421eca860c552b6d01dd4e33436cb963174c814a89b8243db74.Full text
Case 4:20-cr-00193-BSM Document 3 Filed 07/07/20 Page 1 of 9
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EASTERN COURT
, ARKANSAS
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT JUL O7 2020
EASTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS JAMEsw
CENTRAL DIVISION By:
~-~·
DEPCLERK
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ) No. 4:20CR CIJ 19 5 BSf'\
)
V. ) Title 18, U.S.C. § 1344(1)
) Title 18, U.S.C. § 1014
GANELL TUBBS ) Title 18, U.S.C. § 1957
INDICTMENT
THE GRAND JURY CHARGES THAT:
COUNTl
A. INTRODUCTION
At all times material herein:
1. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is a federal
law enacted on March 27, 2020, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the
millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19
pandemic. One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of up to $349
billion in United States Small Business Administration (SBA) guaranteed forgivable loans to
small businesses through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). In April 2020, Congress
authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.
2. In order to obtain a PPP loan, a qualifying business submitted a PPP loan
application, which was signed by an authorized representative of the business. The PPP loan
application is SBA Form 2483. The PPP loan application required the business (through its
authorized representative) to acknowledge the program rules and make certain affirmative
certifications in order to be eligible to obtain the PPP loan. In the PPP loan application, the small
Case 4:20-cr-00193-BSM Document 3 Filed 07/07/20 Page 2 of 9
business (through its authorized representative) stated, among other things, its: (a) average
monthly payroll expense; and (b) number of employees. These figures were used to calculate the
amount of money the small business was eligible to receive under the PPP. In addition,
businesses applying for a PPP loan had to provide documentation showing their payroll
expenses.
3. The PPP allowed qualifying small-businesses and other organizations to receive
loans with a maturity of two years, and an interest rate of 1 percent. PPP loan proceeds had to be
used by businesses on payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities. The PPP allowed
the interest and principal to be forgiven if businesses spent the proceeds on these expenses within
eight weeks ofreceipt, and used at least 75 percent of the forgiven amount for payroll.
4. GANELL TUBBS owns two businesses: The Little Piglet Soap Company, LLC,
and Suga Girl Customs LLC. According to the Arkansas Secretary of State, TUBBS registered
The Little Piglet Soap Company, LLC, on August 2, 2013, and registered Suga Girl Customs,
LLC, on January 15, 2018. Neither business was in good standing with the Arkansas Secretary of
State. Both businesses list the residence of GANELL TUBBS, 9711 Herndon Road, Little Rock,
Arkansas, as the main address for the business. Both businesses list 501-316-7266 as the main
company phone number, which is TUBBS' personal phone number.
5. Celtic Bank and Cross River Bank are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation (FDIC).
B. THE SCHEME
1. On April 30, 2020, TUBBS submitted a PPP Borrower Application Form (SBA
Form 2483) to Celtic Bank, which was processed by BlueVine for her company, Suga Girl
Customs, LLC.
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2. The PPP Application listed TUBBS as the owner of the company, the business
address as 9711 Herndon Road, Little Rock, Arkansas, and the business phone as 501-316-7266.
3. Based on the representations that TUBBS made and caused to be made on the
SBA Form 2483, Suga Girl Customs, LLC, received a PPP loan for $1,518,887 from Celtic
Bank, and the loan was guaranteed by the SBA. The loan proceeds were deposited into a
checking account at Navy Federal Credit Union (NFCU) ending in 6748 in the name of
GANELL TUBBS with an address of9711 Herndon Road, Little Rock, Arkansas, on May 5,
2020.
4. Page two of SBA Form 2483 includes a list of certification statements that must
be initialed by the borrower. TUBBS initialed all of the certifications, including the one that
reads as follows: "I further certify that the information provided in this application and the
information provided in all supporting documents and forms is true and accurate in all material
respects. I understand that knowingly making a false statement to obtain a guaranteed loan from
SBA is punishable under the law... and, if submitted to a federally insured institution, under 18
USC § 1014 by imprisonment of not more than thirty years and/or a fine of not more than
$1,000,000." TUBBS signed and dated SBA Form 2483 on April 30, 2020, for Suga Girl
Customs, LLC.
5. The PPP Application submitted to Celtic Bank stated that Suga Girl Customs,
LLC's average monthly payroll was $607,555. As additional support to the PPP Application,
TUBBS submitted what she claimed to be an Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return (IRS
Form 941) for Quarter 1 of 2020, which included the months of January, February, and March
2020. On the submitted Form 941, TUBBS claimed that she had paid $1,385,903 in wages, tips,
and other compensation during the first quarter of 2020.
3
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6. The PPP Application submitted to Celtic Bank stated that Suga Girl Customs,
LLC had 210 employees, while the submitted Form 941 stated that Suga Girl Customs, LLC had
105 employees.
6. As additional support to the PPP Application for Suga Girl Customs, LLC,
TUBBS submitted a bank statement purported to be from NFCU with a monthly ending date of
February 29, 2020. The "Summary of Accounts" section lists a "Free Business Checking"
account with account number ending in 6748, but the section below that titled "Account
Summary" lists a "Free Business Checking" account with account number ending in 6977. The
statement submitted by TUBBS shows an electronic debit for $615,192.60 on February 23, 2020.
7. TUBBS' NFCU membership was established on December 18, 2019, via the
NFCU website. TUBBS' NFCU account ending in 6748 was not opened until April 28, 2020,
using the IP address: 71.238.128.165.
8. On the PPP application for Suga Girl Customs, LLC, TUBBS indicated that the
business EIN was 83-294 7056.
9. After receiving the deposit of$1,518,887 from Celtic Bank via BlueVine on May
5, 2020, TUBBS moved money to other accounts including:
On May 5, 2020:
$5,000 to NFCU joint account with Nyla Henderson ending in 2232;
$10,000 to NFCU joint account with Nyla Henderson ending in 6532; and
$999,999.95 to TUBBS' NFCU account ending in 2182.
On May 13, 2020:
$150,000 to Bank of America account ending in 9203 in the name of
Mercedes Smith.
10. TUBBS used the proceeds of the loans on the following personal purchases:
4
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On May 7, 2020:
TUBBS sent a cashier's check for $8,000 to UAMS Student Financial
Services.
On May 12, 2020, and May 13, 2020:
TUBBS made online debit card purchases totaling approximately $6,000
at Apple.com, MCM E-Commerce, Pandora Ecommerce, Michael Kors,
Sephora, Northface, Nike, Fashionnova, Aramark, Deckers*Ugg, Stadium
Goods, Kendra's Boutique, Door Dash, and Go Henry prepaid card.
C. THE EXECUTION OF THE SCHEME
On or about April 30, 2020, in the Eastern District of Arkansas and elsewhere, the
defendant,
GANELL TUBBS
knowingly executed the above described scheme and artifice to defraud a financial institution, by
means of false and fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises, to wit, TUBBS submitted
a false PPP Borrower Application Form (SBA Form 2483) on behalf of her company, Suga Girl
Customs, LLC in order to receive a loan in the amount of $1,518,887 from Celtic Bank, a bank
insured by the FDIC, which loan was guaranteed by the SBA.
All in violation of Title 18 U.S.C. § 1344(1).
COUNT 2
The Grand Jury hereby incorporates Count 1, paragraphs Al through AS, into Count 2 as
if written here word for word.
5
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A. THE SCHEME
1. On May 5, 2020, TUBBS submitted a PPP Borrower Application Form (SBA
Form 2483) to Cross River Bank, which was processed by Kabbage for TUBBS' company, The
Little Piglet Soap Company, LLC.
2. The application listed TUBBS as the owner of the company, the business address
as 9711 Herndon Road, Little Rock, Arkansas, and the business phone as 501-316-7266.
3. Based on the representations that TUBBS made and caused to be made on the
SBA Form 2483, The Little Piglet Soap Company, LLC received a PPP loan for $414,375 from
Cross River Bank, and the loan was guaranteed by the SBA. The loan proceeds were deposited
into the checking account at NFCU ending in 6748 in the name ofGANELL TUBBS on May 7,
2020.
4. Page two of the SBA Form 2483 includes a list of certification statements that
must be initialed by the borrower. TUBBS initialed all of the certifications, including the one
that reads as follows: "I further certify that the information provided in this application and the
information provided in all supporting documents and forms is true and accurate in all material
respects. I understand that knowingly making a false statement to obtain a guaranteed loan from
SBA is punishable under the law ... and, if submitted to a federally insured institution, under 18
USC §1014 by imprisonment of not more than thirty years and/or a fine of not more than
$1,000,000." TUBBS signed and dated SBA Form 2483 on May 5, 2020, for The Little Piglet
Soap Company, LLC.
5. The PPP Application submitted to Cross River Bank stated that The Little Piglet
Soap Company, LLC averaged a monthly payroll of $165,750. As additional support to the PPP
Application, TUBBS submitted what she claimed was a Transmittal of Wage and Tax Statements
(IRS Form W-3) for 2020. The 2020 W-3 which TUBBS used was dated March 1, 2020.
6
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6. The PPP Application submitted to Cross River Bank stated that The Little Piglet
Soap Company, LLC had 36 employees. The other document submitted, titled "Paycheck
Protection Program Addendum A", stated that The Little Piglet Soap Company, LLC had 56
employees.
7. As additional support to the PPP Application for The Little Piglet Soap Company,
LLC, TUBBS submitted records from the Arkansas Secretary of State which listed the status of
the business as "Good Standing."
8. According to documents included in the PPP Application, TUBBS utilized
"docusign", which was managed by Kabbage, to sign her PPP Application documents for The
Little Piglet Soap Company, LLC using a mobile device with the IP address: 99.203.97.69.
9. On the PPP Application for The Little Piglet Soap Company, LLC, TUBBS
indicated that the business EIN was 81-4842407.
B. THE EXECUTION OF THE SCHEME
On or about May 5, 2020, in the Eastern District of Arkansas and elsewhere, the
defendant,
GANELL TUBBS,
knowingly executed the above described scheme and artifice to defraud a financial institution, by
means of false and fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises, to wit, TUBBS submitted
a false PPP Borrower Application Form (SBA Form 2483) on behalf of her company, The Little
Piglet Soap Company, LLC, in order to receive a loan in the amount of $414,375 from Cross
River Bank, a bank insured by the FDIC, which loan was guaranteed by the SBA.
All in violation of Title 18 U.S.C. § 1344(1).
7
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COUNT3
On or about April 30, 2020, in the Eastern District of Arkansas, and elsewhere, the
defendant,
GANELL TUBBS,
knowingly made a false statement and report for the purpose of influencing the actions of Celtic
Bank, an institution the accounts of which were insured by the FDIC, and the SBA in connection
with an application for a loan, in that GANELL TUBBS, the defendant, stated in her PPP
Application that Suga Girl Customs, LLC had 210 employees, with an average monthly payroll
of $607,555, when in truth and fact, as the defendant well knew, there were not 210 employees
of Suga Girl Customs, LLC, and there was not an average monthly payroll of$607,555.
All in violation of Title 18, U.S.C. § 1014.
COUNT4
On or about May 5, 2020, in the Eastern District of Arkansas, and elsewhere, the
defendant,
GANELL TUBBS,
knowingly made a false statement and report for the purpose of influencing the actions of Cross
River Bank, an institution the accounts of which were insured by the FDIC, and the SBA in
connection with an application for a loan, in that GANELL TUBBS, the defendant, stated in her
PPP Application that The Little Piglet Soap Company, LLC had 36 employees and 56 employees
with an average monthly payroll of $165,750, when in truth and fact, as the defendant well knew,
there were not 36 or 56 employees of The Little Piglet Soap Company, LLC, and there was not
an average monthly payroll of $165,750.
All in violation of Title 18, U.S.C. § 1014.
8
Case 4:20-cr-00193-BSM Document 3 Filed 07/07/20 Page 9 of 9
COUNTS
On or about May 13, 2020, in the Eastern District of Arkansas and elsewhere, the
defendant,
GANELL TUBBS,
knowingly engaged and attempted to engage in a monetary transaction by and through a financial
institution, affecting interstate commerce, in a criminally derived property of a value greater than
$10,000, that is, transfer of funds in the amount of $150,000, such property having been derived
from a specified unlawful activity, that is, a fraudulent loan application, a violation of Title 18
U.S.C. § 1014, as set forth in Counts Three and Four.
All in violation of Title 18, U.S.C. § 1957.
FORFEITURE ALLEGATION 1
Upon conviction of one or more of the offenses charged in Counts 1 through 4 of this
indictment, the defendant, GANELL TUBBS, shall forfeit to the United States, under Title 18,
United States Code, Section 982(a)(2), all property constituting, or derived from, proceeds the
person obtained directly or indirectly, as a result of the offense.
FORFEITURE ALLEGATION 2
Upon conviction of the offense charged in Count 5 of this indictment, the defendant,
GANELL TUBBS, shall forfeit to the United States, under Title 18, United States Code, Section
982(a)(l), all property, real or personal, involved in the offense, and all property that is traceable
to the property involved in the offense.
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