Indictment — United States v. Thomas (Dkt. 1, E.D. Wash.)

Summary

Grand jury indictment filed March 15, 2022 in United States v. Roshon Edward Thomas, Case No. 2:22-CR-0035-RMP-1, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington. It charges Thomas, a Spokane, Washington resident, with two counts of wire fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1343 over an Economic Injury Disaster Loan application submitted on or about July 28, 2020 for his purported business, I’s Design. The indictment alleges he falsely stated that the business was established on June 23, 2019, had 7 employees as of January 31, 2020 and had gross revenues of $65,000, when it did not exist on that date. It says the SBA approved the loan and on August 9, 2020 disbursed $32,400 to his account at Spokane Teacher’s Credit Union, which held approximately $10 at the time. The forfeiture notice seeks a money judgment of $32,400.00.

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Case 2:22-cr-00035-RMP ECFNo.1_ filed 03/15/22 PagelD.1 Page 1of6

Vanessa R. Waldref Aste US. D1s62 IN THe
. 'Dis ICT
United States Attorney ’ TRICT OR (GURT
. . . 1S ING —
Eastern District of Washington MAR 15 2029 TON
Dan Fruchter Sm hema
Y; (4)
Tyler H.L. Tornabene SPOKANE LERK
Wine, DePuy

Assistant United States Attorneys
Post Office Box 1494

Spokane, WA 99210-1494
Telephone: (509) 353-2767

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 2:22-CR-0035-RMP-1
Plaintiff, INDICTMENT
V. Vio: 18U.S.C. § 1343
Wire Fraud
ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, (Counts 1, 2)
Defendant. 18 U.S.C. § 981(a)(1)(C) and
28 U.S.C. § 2461(c)
Forfeiture Allegations

The Grand Jury charges:

General Allegations

l. At all times relevant to this Indictment, the Defendant, ROSHON
EDWARD THOMAS, was a resident of Spokane, Washington.

2. The Economic Injury Disaster Loan (“EIDL”) program is a Small
Business Administration (“SBA”) program that provides low-interest funding to
small businesses, renters, and homeowners affected by declared disasters.

3. On March 27, 2020, the President signed into law the Coronavirus
Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act. That statute, along with the
Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act,

authorized the SBA to provide EIDLs of up to $2 million to eligible small

INDICTMENT - 1

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Case 2:22-cr-00035-RMP ECFNo.1_ filed 03/15/22 PagelD.2 Page 2 of 6

businesses experiencing substantial financial disruption due to the COVID-19
pandemic. In addition, the CARES Act authorized the SBA to advance up to
$10,000 to a small business within three days of its application for an EIDL. The
amount of the advance was determined by the number of employees that the
applicant certified having. Those advances did not have to be repaid.

4. In order to obtain an EIDL and advance, a qualifying business must
submit an application to the SBA and provide information about its operations,
such as the number of employees, gross revenues for the 12-month period
preceding the disaster, and cost of goods sold in the 12-month period preceding the
disaster. In the case of EIDLs for COVID-19 relief, the 12-month period was the
year preceding January 31, 2020. The applicant must also certify that all the
information in the application is true and correct to the best of the applicant’s
knowledge.

5. The amount of an EIDL, if the application is approved, is determined
based, in part, on the information provided in the application about employment,
revenue, and cost of goods, as set forth above. Any funds issued under an EIDL or
advance are issued directly by the SBA. EIDL funds can be used for payroll
expenses, sick leave, production costs, and business obligations, such as debts,
rent, and mortgage payments. Ifthe applicant also obtains a loan under the
Paycheck Protection Program, the EIDL funds cannot be used for the same purpose
as the Paycheck Protection Program funds.

6. EIDL applications are received in cloud-based platforms. The
location of the server through which the EIDL application is submitted is based on
the date the application was processed by SBA and the application number.

During the time period relevant to this Indictment, all EIDL applications were
received in a Microsoft cloud-based platform using a Rapid Finance application,

through SBA servers located in Des Moines, Iowa.

INDICTMENT — 2

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Case 2:22-cr-00035-RMP ECFNo.1_ filed 03/15/22 PagelD.3 Page 3 of 6

COUNTS 1, 2

7. The allegations in paragraphs | through 6 of this Indictment are

incorporated as though realleged herein.
The Scheme

8. Beginning no later than on or about July 13, 2020, and continuing
through at least August 11, 2020, in the Eastern District of Washington and
elsewhere, the Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, devised and intended
to devise a scheme to defraud the SBA, and to obtain money and property by
means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises.

9. Specifically, the Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, applied
for an EIDL using false information about his purported company, I’s Design, with
the intent to defraud, steal, and convert the proceeds of the EIDL to the Defendant,
ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS’s personal use and without any intent to use the
proceeds thereof for any authorized purpose, or any intent to repay the EIDL.

Manner and Means

It was part of this scheme that:

10. Onor about July 28, 2020, the Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD
THOMAS, applied for an EIDL by submitting application number 3312044971 to
the SBA under the name of his purported business, I’s Design. The Defendant,
ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, listed I’s Design’s business address as his own
personal address as found on his Washington State Driver’s License, but with a
“suite” number in the place of the apartment number.

11. The Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, falsely stated, in the
application, that I’s Design had been established on June 23, 2019, that it had 7
employees as of January 31, 2020, and that its gross revenues for the 12-month
period prior to January 31, 2020, were $65,000. The Defendant, ROSHON
EDWARD THOMAS, indicated that the Employer ID number (“EIN”) for I’s
Design was 85-1909430.

INDICTMENT -— 3

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Case 2:22-cr-00035-RMP ECFNo.1_ filed 03/15/22 PagelD.4 Page 4 of6

12. The Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, certified that the
information in the application was true and correct to the best of his knowledge,
under penalty of perjury and of other criminal penalties for false information.

13. These representations and certifications were materially false. In fact,
I’s Design did not exist as of January 31, 2020. On or about July 13, 2020, the
Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, sought and obtained EIN 85-
1909430. Additionally, the State of Washington business license submitted by the
Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, for I’s Designs bore an issuance date
of July 24, 2020. Moreover, I’s Design did not have any employees, and did not
even exist, as of January 31, 2020, nor did it have any receipts in the 12 prior
months. Accordingly, I’s Design and the Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD
THOMAS, were not eligible for any EIDL funding.

14.  Inhis EIDL application, the Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD
THOMAS, provided a bank account in his name for disbursement with Spokane
Teacher’s Credit Union (STCU), account number xxxxxxxxx8211 (“the STCU
Account”). STCU is a federally insured financial institution, the deposits of which
are insured by the National Credit Union Administration. The STCU Account was
created by the Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, on or about July 24,
2020, approximately four days before his EIDL application. In opening the STCU
account, he listed his employer as Walmart.

15. As aresult of the fraud and relying on the materially false and
fraudulent representations and certifications made by the Defendant, ROSHON
EDWARD THOMAS, SBA approved the requested EIDL, and, on August 9,
2020, disbursed $32,400 to the STCU Account of the Defendant, ROSHON
EDWARD THOMAS. At the time of disbursement of the EIDL, the STCU
Account held approximately $10.

16. Onor about each of the dates set forth below, in the Eastern District

of Washington and elsewhere, the Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, for

INDICTMENT -— 4

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Case 2:22-cr-00035-RMP ECFNo.1 filed 03/15/22 PagelD.5 Page 5of6

the purpose of executing the scheme described above, caused to be transmitted by
means of wire communication in interstate commerce the signals and sounds

described below for each count, each transmission constituting a separate count:

Count | Date Description

1 July 28, 2020 | EIDL Loan Application No. 3312044971, electronically S /,
submitted from the Easter» District of Washington to the bu

SBA in Des Moines, Iowa. Sice

2 Between on | Electronic funds disbursement of $32,400 in EIDL

or about proceeds were initiated on or about August 9, 2020 by
August 9 and | the SBA Denver Finance Center located in Denver, CO
August 11, which transmitted the payment information through the
2020 FMS system to the Treasury and, on August 11, 2020,

electronically deposited the $32,400 into the STCU
Account in the Eastern District of Washington.

All in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343.
NOTICE OF FORFEITURE ALLEGATIONS

The allegations contained in this Indictment are hereby realleged and
incorporated herein by this reference for the purpose of alleging forfeitures.

Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 981(a)(1)(C) and 28 U.S.C. § 2461(c), upon
conviction of an offense in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343, as alleged in Counts 1
and 2 of this Indictment, the Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, shall
forfeit to the United States any property, real or personal, which constitutes or is
derived from proceeds traceable to the offense. The property to be forfeited
includes, but is not limited to, the following:

MONEY JUDGMENT

A sum of money equal to $32,400.00 in United States currency,
representing the amount of proceeds obtained by the Defendant,
ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS, from the wire fraud violations.

If any of the property described above, as the result of any act or omission of
the Defendant, ROSHON EDWARD THOMAS:

(a) cannot be located upon the exercise of due diligence;

INDICTMENT — 5

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(b) has been transferred or sold to, or deposited with, a third party;

(c) has been placed beyond the jurisdiction of the court;

(d) has been substantially diminished in value; or

(e) has been commingled with other property which cannot be divided

without difficulty,

the United States shall be entitled to forfeiture of substitute property pursuant to 21
U.S.C. § 853(p), as incorporated by 18 U.S.C. § 981(a)(1)(C) and 28 U.S.C.
§ 2461(c).

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Vanessa R. Waldref
United States Attorney

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Dan Fru¢hter”
Assistant United States Attorney

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Tyler H.C. Tornabérie

Assistant United States Attorney

INDICTMENT -— 6

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