11 Defendants Indicted for $220,000 Covid Fraud Conspiracy — Paycheck Protection Program

Summary

A news release published February 22, 2024, reporting that 11 defendants from Missouri, Kansas, Texas, and Washington were indicted by a federal grand jury over a conspiracy that resulted in more than $220,000 in fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program loans. The release says a 13-count indictment was returned under seal and made public after the arrests of nine defendants. It states that Daisha Sanders is alleged to have created loan applications for herself and each co-conspirator in exchange for a payment of up to $5,000 per applicant. Daisha Sanders is also charged with one count of money laundering, and the indictment contains a forfeiture allegation that includes a money judgment of $70,832. The release says the charges are accusations, not evidence of guilt.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Eleven defendants from Missouri, Kansas, Texas, and Washington have been indicted by a federal grand jury for their roles in a conspiracy that resulted in more than $220,000 in fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans being issued under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Daisha Sanders, 32, and her boyfriend, Joel Wright, 34, both formerly of Blue Springs, Mo., and her mother, Denise Sanders, 60, all of Royse, Texas; Shaquille Fielder, 31, of Kansas City, Mo.; Jordan Nichols, 30, of North Kansas City, Mo.; Kiandra Crowe, 33, of Grandview, Mo.; Alfred Hayes IV, 29, of Overland Park, Kansas; Luana McNurlin, 36, of St. Louis, Mo.; Rashonda Golden, 34, of Tacoma, Washington; Roxanne Nazir, 38, of Arlington, Texas; and Jeffrey Chillis, 30, of Corpus Christi, Texas, were charged in a 13-count indictment returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., on Feb. 6, 2024.
That indictment was unsealed and made public today following the arrests of nine defendants. Crowe, Hayes, McNurlin and Fielder will have their initial court appearances in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., today. Daisha and Denise Sanders, Wright, Nazir and Chillis were arrested in Texas and will have their first court appearances tomorrow.
The federal indictment alleges that each of the 11 defendants participated in a conspiracy to submit false and fraudulent applications for PPP loans from February 2021 to July 2022. The conspiracy allegedly caused more than $220,000 in fraudulent PPP loans to be issued to ineligible borrowers, most of which were forgiven even though the funds were not used for the purposes specified in the PPP.
According to the indictment, Daisha Sanders created PPP loan applications for herself and for each of the co-conspirators in exchange for a payment from the loan proceeds. The applications falsely stated either the existence of a sole proprietorship prior to the pandemic or greatly inflated the revenues of any “businesses” that did exist in 2019. Daisha Sanders allegedly created fictitious bank records, IRS forms and other false financial documents to support the fraudulent PPP loan applications.
Daisha Sanders submitted the PPP loan applications on behalf of each of the co-conspirators, according to the indictment. Once the PPP loans were funded, the co-conspirators would pay her up to $5,000 for making and submitting the false loan applications.
In addition to the wire fraud conspiracy, Daisha Sanders is charged with one count of wire fraud and each of the remaining defendants is charged with aiding and abetting Daisha Sanders in one count of wire fraud. Each of the defendants allegedly applied for a PPP loan of approximately $20,833.
Daisha Sanders is also charged with one count of money laundering. The indictment also contains a forfeiture allegation, which would require Daisha Sanders to forfeit to the government any proceeds she derived from the alleged offenses, including a money judgment of $70,832.
The charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul S. Becker. It was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.

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