Kissimmee Man Surrenders On Federal COVID Relief Fraud Charges
Summary
A press release published June 21, 2022 by USAO - Florida, Middle, headed Kissimmee Man Surrenders On Federal COVID Relief Fraud Charges. It states that United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Levelle Joseph Harris, 36, of Kissimmee has surrendered pursuant to an indictment charging 14 counts of wire fraud, each punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. According to the release, Harris was indicted on June 7, 2022, and between May 27, 2020, and June 2, 2021, applied for 14 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans using false information. The release says the loans were approved and Harris received more than $1 million in internet wire transfers. It adds that an indictment is merely an allegation and that the Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case.
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“Kissimmee Man Surrenders On Federal COVID Relief Fraud Charges.”
Original at www.justice.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2022-06-21-kissimmee-man-surrenders-on-federal-covid-relief-fraud-char-478cd24db3/
, SHA-256 f93a614c5b66e200c6509b67ab8c5be39967f522d7e3af83b40314dfcbba2208.Full text
Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Levelle Joseph Harris (36, Kissimmee) has surrendered pursuant to an indictment charging him with 14 counts of wire fraud. Each count is punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Harris had been indicted on June 7, 2022. According to the facts presented in court, between May 27, 2020, and June 2, 2021, Harris applied for 14 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act using false information. As part of his scheme, Harris made false representations on his PPP applications and electronically submitted the applications over the internet. The fraudulent loans were approved, and Harris received more than $1 million in internet wire transfers. An indictment is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed a federal criminal offense. Every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty. This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Hannah Nowalk. This case is being prosecuted as part the Department of Justice’s prosecution of fraud schemes that exploit the CARES Act relief programs. The CARES Act is a federal law enacted in March 2020, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the two programs that were developed through CARES Act is the PPP. It provides funding to businesses through PPP loans for payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent and utilities. PPP allows the interest and principal on loans to be forgiven if the business spends proceeds on certain expense items within a designated time and uses a certain percentage of the loan on payroll expenses. The Department of Justice remains vigilant in detecting, investigating, and prosecuting wrongdoing related to the crisis.
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