Taiji Group USA, Inc., a Paper Converter in Conover, N.C., Has Agreed to Pay $460,395.09 to Resolve Allegations

Summary

A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of North Carolina, published February 13, 2025, announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Lawrence J. Cameron. It states that Taiji Group USA, Inc., a paper converter in Conover, N.C., has agreed to pay $460,395.09 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by knowingly providing false information to apply for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan. It says two certifications in the March 2021 second round application, on ownership and on a board member, were allegedly false, and that the $271,165 loan was forgiven in full. It names the qui tam case as United States of America ex rel. Sidesolve, LLC, v. Taiji Group USA, Inc., W.D.N.C. Case No. 5:24-cv-98, and says there has been no determination of liability.

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“Taiji Group USA, Inc., a Paper Converter in Conover, N.C., Has Agreed to Pay $460,395.09 to Resolve Allegations.” Original at www.justice.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2025-02-13-conover-company-settles-allegations-related-to-receiving-an-2e7ec36a20/, SHA-256 191ad12d7a94f57f1d7245522263f4063c13a23ab699ef0037fc9eb201bff5cc.

Full text

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Taiji Group USA, Inc. (Taiji Group), a paper converter in Conover, N.C., has agreed to pay $460,395.09, to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by knowingly providing false information to apply for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan to which the company was not entitled, announced Lawrence J. Cameron, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
Congress created the PPP in March 2020 as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, to provide forgivable loans to small businesses struggling to pay employees and other expenses. In 2021, Congress offered a second round of forgivable PPP loans through the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act. When applying for PPP loans, borrowers were required to certify the truthfulness and accuracy of all information provided in their loan applications.
In March 2021, Taiji Group applied for a second round PPP loan and certified that it was eligible to receive the loan. Among other certifications, Taiji Group certified that no “entity created in or organized under the laws of the People’s Republic of China” owned or held 20 percent or more of the economic interest in Taiji Group. The company also certified that it did not retain, as a member of its board of directors, a person who was a resident of the People’s Republic of China. At the time of its application, however, both of these certifications were allegedly false. For this reason, Taiji Group was not eligible for the $271,165 second round PPP loan that it received. After receiving the PPP loan, Taiji Group sought and received forgiveness of the total amount of the loan.
“PPP loans were a lifeline for many businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Cameron. “Ineligible businesses that improperly obtained federal aid loans harmed the taxpayers who funded these programs and reduced the resources available for businesses that were eligible to receive assistance. Our office is committed to rooting out fraud and holding accountable businesses that wrongfully benefited from these federal programs.”
This matter arose from a lawsuit filed under the
qui tam
or whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act, which permits private parties, called relators, to file suit on behalf of the United States for false claims and share in a portion of the government’s recovery. The
qui tam
case is captioned
United States of America ex rel. Sidesolve, LLC, v. Taiji Group USA, Inc
., W.D.N.C. Case No. 5:24-cv-98.
The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Johnson.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at:
https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form
.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only. There has been no determination of liability.

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Our copy: 2025-02-13_conover-company-settles-allegations-related-to-receiving-an-improper-pay_0ce11ab2.md.txt
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