Criminal Complaint — United States v. Nikenson Jean Mathurin (Mag. No. 23-10316, D.N.J.)

Summary

Criminal complaint in United States v. Nikenson Jean Mathurin, a/k/a "Nik Mathurin," Mag. No. 23-10316, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, before Hon. Michael A. Hammer, attested by telephone on the 14th day of December, 2023. Count One charges wire fraud under Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343 over a transfer of approximately $261,897 from Lender 1, and a money laundering count under Section 1957 covers an approximately $47,000 transfer. An FHFA-OIG special agent states that from around April 2020 through around November 2022 Mathurin submitted PPP and EIDL applications for five business entities with fabricated tax and payroll documents, obtaining approximately $2,053,747. The affidavit says proceeds went to travel, restaurant equipment and over $370,000 to an online vehicle auction company account.

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Cite this document

“Criminal Complaint — United States v. Nikenson Jean Mathurin (Mag. No. 23-10316, D.N.J.).” Original at www.justice.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/complaint-no-d-n-j-mag-no-23-10316-d-n-j-5879b064f7/, SHA-256 74f43ebf5441a4cf9c0123ea703a35ef211defb68639ab27cffe065a2ab634d5.

Full text

2023R00453/F~I C

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Hon. Michael A. Hammer

V. Mag. No. 23-10316

NIKENSON JEAN MATHURIN CRIMINAL COMP
a/k/a "Nik Mathurin"
a/k/a "Jean Mathurin"

I, Jaclyn Nunez, being duly sworn, state the following i true and correct to the
best of my know ledge and belief:

SEE ATTACHMENT A

I further state that I am a Special Agent with the Federal Housing Finance
Agency Office of Inspector General ("FHFA-OIG"), and that this Complaint is based
on the following facts:

SEE ATTACHMENT B

continued on the attached pages and made a part herjf.

Special Agent Jaclyn Nunez attested to this Affidavit by telephone pl1Tsuant to Fed.
R. Cr. P. 4.l(b)(2)(A) on this 14th day of December, 2023.

Hon ... lichael A. Hammer
Cnited tate i\Iagi trate Judge

1
ATTACHMENT A

COUNT ONE
(Wire Fraud)

From in and around April 2020 through in and around November 2022, in
Sussex County, in the District of New Jersey and elsewhere, the defendant,

NIKENSON JEAN MATHURIN,
a/k/a "Nik Mathurin,"
a/k/a "Jean Mathurin,"

knowingly and intentionally devised and intended to devise a scheme and artifice to
defraud, and to obtain money and property by means of materially false and
fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises, and, for the purpose of
executing and attempting to execute such scheme and artifice, did transmit and cause
to be transmitted by means of wire communications in interstate commerce, the
following writing, sign, signal, picture, and sound:

Approx.
Description of Wire
Date

Lender 1 transferred approximately $261,897 to
MATHURIN's 4948 Account via an interstate wire that
6/8/2020
traveled through the State of Texas and the District of
New Jersey.

In violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343.

-1-
COUNT 'IWO
(Money Laundering)

On or about July 17, 2020, in Sussex County, in the District of New Jersey and
elsewhere, the defendant,

NIKENSON JEAN MATHURIN,
a/k/a "Nik Mathurin,"
a/k/a "Jean Mathurin,"

did knowingly engage and attempt to engage in a monetary transaction by, through,
and to a financial institution, affecting interstate and foreign commerce, in criminally
derived property of a value greater than $10,000, that is, causing an electronic
transfer of approximately $47,000 from MATHURIN's bank account at Bank 3 ending
in 4948 to MATHURIN's 0741 Account, such property having been derived from a
specified unlawful activity, that is, wire fraud in violation of Title 18, United States
Code, Section 1343.

In violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1957.

-2-
ATTACHME TB

I, Jaclyn Nunez, am a Special Agent with the FHFA-OIG. The
information contained in the complaint is based upon my personal knowledge, as well
as information obtained from other sources, including: (a) statements made or
reported by various witnesses with knowledge of relevant facts; (b) my review of
publicly available information; and (c) my review of evidence, including, business
records, bank records, and other documents. Because this complaint is being
submitted for the limited purpose of establishing probable cause to believe a federal
crime was committed, I have not set forth every fact that I know concerning this
investigation. Where the contents of documents and the actions and statements of
others are reported, they are reported in substance and in part, except where
otherwise indicated. Where I assert that an event took place on a particular date, I
am asserting that it took place on or about the date alleged.

Overview

1. From in and around April 2020 through in and around November 2022,
the Defendant, Nikenson Jean Mathurin, a/k/a "Nik Mathurin," a/k/a "Jean
Mathurin" ("MATHURIN"), participated in a fraudulent scheme to receive
approximately $2,053,747 in COVID-19 emergency relief loans and cash advances
meant for distressed small businesses under the Paycheck Protection Program
("PPP") and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program ("EIDL Program ').
MATHURIN submitted false and fraudulent loan applications on behalf of five
business entities to four lenders. In support of these applications, MATHURIN
provided false and fraudulent documents and information to the lenders, including
fabricated tax documents, payroll documents, and number of employees. Based at
least in part on these materially false and fraudulent materials, MATHURIN
obtained approximately $2,053,747, which was deposited into his various bank
accounts he controlled. MATHURIN then used the fraudulently obtained proceeds
to, among other things, send money to other accounts he controlled, buy restaurant
equipment, pay for travel expenses and motorcycle driving lessons, and transfer over
$370,000 to an online vehicle auction company account, which was used to buy luxury
cars, motorcycles, and motorcycle parts.
Background

The PPP

2. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act ("CARES Act")
was a federal law enacted in and around March 2020 designed to provide emergency
financial assistance to Americans suffering economic effects caused by the COVID-19
pandemic. One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of
up to approximately $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job
retention and certain other expenses, through a program referred to as the PPP. In
and around April 2020, Congress authorized over approximately $300 billion in
additional PPP funding.

3. To obtain a PPP loan, a qualifying business had to submit a PPP loan
application, which was signed by an authorized representative of the business. The
PPP loan application required the business (through its authorized representative)
to acknowledge the program rules and make certain affirmative certifications to be
eligible to obtain the PPP money. In the PPP loan application, the business (through
its authorized representative) truthfully had to state, among other things, its: (a)
average monthly payroll expenses; and (b) number of employees. These figures were
used to calculate the amount of money the business was eligible to receive under the
PPP. In addition, a business applying for PPP money had to provide truthful
supporting documentation, which could include the business's tax information.

4. A PPP loan application had to be processed by a participating financial
institution (the lender). If a PPP loan application was approved, the participating
financial institution funded the PPP loan using its own monies, which were 100%
guaranteed by the United States Small Business Administration ("SBA"). Data from
the application, including information about the borrower, total amount of the loan,
and listed number of employees was transmitted by the lender to the SBA in the
course of processing the loan.

5. PPP money had to be used by the business on certain permissible
expenses-payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities. The PPP allowed
the interest and principal on the PPP loan to be forgiven entirely if the business spent
the money on these expense items within a designated period (usually eight weeks of
receiving the money) and used at least 75% of the PPP money on payroll expenses.

-2-
The EIDL Program

6. Another source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the EIDL
Program, which was an SBA program that provided low-interest financing to small
businesses, renters, and homeowners in regions affected by declared disasters.

7. In order to obtain an EIDL Program loan, a qualifying business was
required to submit an application to the SBA and provide truthful 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 EIDL Program loans for COVID-19 relief, the 12-month
period constituted the 12 months preceding January 31, 2020. In addition, t he
business entity must have existed in an operational condition on February 1, 2020.

8. The amount of the EIDL Program loan was determined based, in part,
on the information the applicant provided regarding the revenue, employees, and co t
of goods of the company. The SBA directly issued any money disbursed under an
EIDL Program loan to the applicant company. A company was permitted to use EIDL
Program money for payroll expenses, sick leave, production costs, and busine
obligations, such as debts, rent, and mortgage payments.

9. As part of the EIDL Program application, applicants could apply for up
to a $10,000 grant, known as an EIDL Program advance, which did not need to be
repaid.

The Federal Wire Transfer Network

10. T he Federal Reserve Bank operates the Federal Wire Transfer etwork
(-Fedwire~) which is an electronic funds-transfer system used primarily for the
transmis ion and settlement of certain payment orders.

11. At all times relevant to this Complaint, money transmitted by Fedwire
wa.: routed via electronic wire from its origin to its destination through the District
of_ -ew Je ey.

12. As et fo rth below, the money that MATHURIN procured fro m false and
fraudulen loan applications submitted to Lender 1 were sent to bank account
co tro ed by _ IATHURI via interstate wire through the Di trict of ew J ersey

-3-
Relevant Entities and Individuals

13. At all times relevant to this Complaint:

a. MATHURIN resided in Sparta, ew Jersey (the "Sparta
Residence"). He fraudulently applied for PPP and EIDL Program loans through the
following shell entities that he purportedly owned and controlled:

i. Innovation Partners Plus, Inc. ("Innovation"), purportedly located
in Valley Stream, New York;

ii. Opulence Motor Group , LLC ("Opulence"), purportedly located in
Sparta, New Jersey;

iii. OMG Collision Corp. doing business as Corsa Volante ("OMG"),
purportedly located in Lynbrook, New York;

iv. Tricon Systems LTC ("Tricon"), purportedly located in Mount
Olive, New Jersey; and

v. America Home Care LLC ("America Home Care"), purportedly
located in Sparta, New Jersey.

b. Bank 1 was a financial institution headquartered in California.

c. Bank 2 was a financial institution headquartered in New Jersey,
where MATHURI had at least two accounts: an Innovation checking account ending
in 074 1 ("Account 0741") and a Tricon checking account ending in 3811 ("Account
3 11"). 1IATHURIN was the sole signatory for Account 0741 and Account 3811.

d. Bank 3 was a financial institution headquartered in Alabama,
where~ IATHURIN had at least two accounts: an Opulence checking account ending
in -19 ("'Account 4948") and an OMG checking account ending in 5781 ("Account
5 1 ). ~IATHURIN's Sparta Residence is listed on Account 4948 and Account 5781.

e. Bank 4 was a financial institution headquartered in Ohio.

f. Lender 1 was a financial services company headquartered m
California.

g. Lender 2 was a financial services company headquartered in ew
Yor .

h. Lender 3 was a financial institution headquartered in ·ew
Jersey. where . l.\.THURI had at least one bank account: an America Home Care
checking account end.in in 3056 ("Account 3056"). MATHURI wa the ole
ignatory for Account 3056.

.4.
The Scheme to Defraud

14. From in and around April 2020 through in and around November 2022,
MATHURIN submitted, or caused to be submitted, falsified and fraudulent loan and
loan forgiveness applications to approved lenders, including Lenders 1, 2, and 3, and
the SBA, to fraudulently obtain money through both the PPP and EIDL Program,
and to seek forgiveness of these loans .

15. In connection with his fraud, MATHURIN submitted at least the
following falsified PPP and EIDL Program loan applications:
. •

Appx. Appx.
1a;r Applicat ion
Date
Application
Type
Lender Amount
Funded

Innovation May 11, 2020 PPP Lender 1 $164,666

Innovation March 31 , 2020 EIDL SBA $149,900

Innovation March 31, 2020 EIDL Advance SBA $10,000

Opulence June 1, 2020 PPP Lender 1 $261 ,897

OMG May 10, 2020 PPP Lender 1 $205,527

Tricon February 8, 2021 PPP Lender 2 $522,500

America Home
April 2, 2021 PPP Lender 3 $739,257
Care

Innovation PPP Application to Lender 1

16. On or about May 11, 2020, MATHURIN submitted a PPP application to
Lender 1 dated April 4, 2020 on behalf of Innovation requesting approximately
$198,233 ("Application-I"). MATHURIN submitted Application-1 via email from
account, nm@innovationny.com, which contained the email signature "Nik
Mathurin." Application-I, which listed MATHURIN as Innovation's sole owner and
primary contact, stated that Innovation's monthly payroll was approximately $79,305
and that the company had 15 employees. In support of Application-1 , MATHURIN

.5.
provided Lender 1 wit h various upporting documents, including copies of his
Connecticut driver's license, passport card, and a purported Internal Revenue Service
("IRS") Form 940 for 2019 and IRS Form 941s and payroll documents for Innovation
for 2019 and 2020.

17. Application-1 contained materially false and fraudulent information.
For instance, IRS records confirmed that Innovation did not file an IRS Form 940 or
an IRS Form 941 between 2018 and 2021. Therefore, the tax documents MATHURIN
submitted to Lender 1 were falsified and fraudulent. Innovation's purported payroll
documentation was also falsified and fraudulent. The submitted payroll
documentation for January 1, 2019, through March 31, 2020 claimed between 15 and
16 employees, including MATHURIN, and average monthly payrolls of between
approximately $67,947 and $79,305. New York State Department of Labor ("NY
DOL'') has no records of any employees during the relevant timeframe .

18. On or about May 20, 2020, Lender 1 transferr ed approximately $164,666
to Account 0741. Lender 1 used Bank 1 to di bur e the fund to Account 0741 via
interstate wire through the District of New J er ey u ing Fedwi.re.

Innovation EIDL Program Application to the BA

19. On or about March 31 , 2020, MATHUR! created an EIDL application
on behalf of Innova tion for the SBA seeking approximately 150,000 and a $10,000
advance ("Application-2"). Application-2 listed MATHUR! a Innovation's owner
and provided his Social Security umber, mobile phone number (the "MATHURIN
Phone Number"), which is subscribed to MATHURIN, email address
nm@innovationny.com, and account information for Account 0741.

20. Application-2 contained materially false and fraudulent information.
For instance, Application-2 stated that Innovation had 20 employees as of January
31 2020. Innovation appears to have no employees as the company claimed it only
bad to pay state unemployment tax in New York State and the NY DOL has no record
of Innovation paying any such tax there. In Application-2, MATHURIN claimed
1.200,000 in gross revenues and $70,000 in cost of goods sold from January 31, 2019
to January 31, 2020. NY DOL has no records of any employees during the relevant
timeframe. Account 0741, which MATHURIN did not open until approximately
January 2020, does not support these purported figures.

21. In addition to creating Application-2, on or about May 21, 2020,
. l-\THL~I also signed a note for a $150,000 EIDL program loan .

22. Bank records show that on or about April 21, 2020, Innovation received
approximately $10,000 from the SBA into Account 0741. On or about May 22, 2020,
the BA disbursed approximately $149,900 into Account 0741.

-6-
Opulence PPP Application to Lender 1

23. On or about June 1, 2020, MATHURIN submitted a PPP application to
Lender 1 on behalf of Opulence requesting approximately $205,115 ("Application-3").
Application-3 was submitted by "Nik Mathurin" at nm@omgluxury.com and listed
MATHURIN as Opulence's sole owner and primary contact.

24. In support of Application-3, MATHURIN submitted materially false and
fraudulent information, including Opulence's purported tax documents, specifically
an IRS Form 940 for 2019 and IRS Form 941s for 2019 and 2020. IRS records
confirmed that Opulence did not file an IRS Form 940 or an IRS Form 941 between
2018 through 2021. Therefore, the tax documents ubmitted in support of
Application-3 were fa lsified and fraudulent.

25. On or about June 5, 2020, MATHUR! digitally igned the Opulence
note for the PPP loan using an internet protocol ("IP") a ddre then assigned to
MATHURIN at the Sparta Residence. Bank records show that on or about June 8,
2020, Lender 1 transferred approximately $261,897 to Account 494 , which was sent
via interstate wire through the District of New Jersey using Fedwire .

26. On or about June 26, 2020, MATHURIN transferred approximately
$90,000 from Account 4948 to Account 0741. On or about July 17, 2020, IATHURL -
then transferred an additional approximately $47,000 from Account 4948 to Account
0741.

OMG PPP Application to Lender 1

27. On or about May 10, 2020, MATHURIN submitted a PPP application
("Application-4") to Lender 1 on behalf of OMG requesting approximately 154,475,
listing himself as OMG's sole owner and primary contact.

28. In support of OMG's PPP application, MATHURIN submitted fa lse and
fraudulent information to Lender 1, including purported tax documents, specifically
an IRS Form 940 for 2019 and IRS Form 941s for 2019 and 2020. IRS records
confirmed that OMG did not file an IRS Form 940 or an IRS Form 941 between 2018
and 202 1. Therefore, the tax documents submitted in support of Application-4 were
falsified a nd fraudulent.

29 . MATHURIN digitally signed the Opulence note for the PPP loan using
an internet protocol ("IP") address then assigned to MATHURIN at the Sparta
Re idence. Bank records show that on or about June 15, 2020, OMG received

-7-
approximately $205,527 into Account 5781 , which was sent Vla interstate wire
through the District of New Jersey using Fedwire.

Tricon PPP Application to Lender 2

30. On or about February 8, 2021, MATHURIN electronically signed a PPP
application to Lender 2 on behalf of Tricon requesting approximately $480,000
("Application-5"), which listed MATHURIN as Tricon's sole owner and primary
contact. MATHURIN used email a ccount nmath@triconsys.com to send
Application-5.

31. Based on records received as part of t he investigation,
nmath@triconsys.com is associated with MATHUR! s webhostin g account. The
webhosting customer account information is in MATHUR! ' name and includes his
nikensonm@gmail.com account, which is subscribed to him ( 'MATHURIN's Gmail
Account") .

32. In support of Application-5, MATHUR! submitted materially fa lse and
fraudulent information to Lender 2, including purported tax documents, specifically
IRS Form 941s for 2019 with MATHURIN's name as president ofTricon. IRS records
confirmed that Tricon did not file an IRS Form 941 between 2018 a nd 2021.
Therefore, the tax documents submitted in support of Application- 5 were falsifie d a nd
fraudulent.

33. Bank records show that on or about March 16, 202 1, Lender 2
transferred approximately $522,500 to Account 3811.

America Home Care PPP Application to Lender 3

34. On or about April 2, 2021 , MATHURIN electronically signed a PPP
application to Lender 3 on behalf of America Home Care requesting approximately
$739,257 ("Application-6"), in which MANTHURIN listed himself as America Home
Care's sole owner and primary contact. MATHURIN electronically signed
Application-6 and the note using the name "NIKENSON MATHURIN" and
MATHURIN's Gmail Account.

35. In support of Application-6, MATHURN submitted purported t ax
documents, specifically an IRS Form 940 for 2019 and IRS Form 941 s for 2019 and
2020. IRS records confirmed that American Home Care did not file an IRS Form 940
or an IRS Form 941 between 2018 a nd 2021. Therefore, the tax documents submitted
in support of Appliaction-6 were falsified and fraudulent.

36. Bank records show that on or about April 5, 2021, Lender 3 tr a nsferred
approximately $739,257 in to Account 3056.

-8-
37. In total, MATHURIN's fraud scheme resulted in _ l.:\Tilli
fraudulently obtaining a total of approximately $2,053,847, which wa appro • a e.
1,893,947 in PPP funds and approximately $159,900 in EIDL Program funds.

Misuse of Fraudulently Obtained PPP and EIDL Program Ione,

38. Based on financial analysis, MATHURIN misused the e fraudulently
obtained funds for, among other things, travel expenses, restaurant equipment
unrelated to any of his purported businesses, motorcycle driving 1 sson , transfers
between various MATHURIN-controlled bank accounts, and transfer to an account
at an online vehicle auction company that was used to buy luxury cars, motorcycles,
and motorcycle parts.

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