Criminal Complaint — No. 1:21-mj-05134 (Dkt. 1, W.D.N.Y.)

Summary

A criminal complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, Case 1:21-mj-05134, filed as Document 1 of 13 pages, charging Adam D. Arena and Amanda J. Gloria. Count One, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, alleges that from at least in or around May 2020 through at least in or around October 2020, in the Western District of New York and elsewhere, the defendants knowingly conspired with others to obtain money and property of a financial institution by materially false and fraudulent pretenses, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349. Count Two charges conspiracy to engage in monetary transactions with criminally derived proceeds over the same period. The affiant is with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the complaint was sworn telephonically in May, 2021 before Honorable Michael J. Kemer, United States Magistrate Judge.

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Case 1:21-mj-05134-MJR Document1 Filed 05/28/21 Page 1of13

AO 91 (Rev. 02/09) Criminal Complaint

United States District Sant,

or FILED

Western District of New York ( / AY 98 2021
United States of America Wes~S A S

TERN DISTRICLS oF!

ADAM D. ARENA and AMANDA J. GLORIA

Defendants

CRIMINAL COMPLAINT
I, the affiant in this case, state that the following is true to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Count One
Conspiracy to Commit Bank Fraud

From at least in or around May 2020 through at least in or around October 2020, in the Western
District of New York and elsewhere, the defendants,

ADAM D. ARENA and AMANDA J. GLORIA,

knowingly and willfully, and with intent to defraud, conspired and agreed together and with others known
and unknown, to execute and attempt to execute a scheme and artifice to obtain moneys, funds, credits,
assets, securities, and other property owned by, and under the custody and control of, a financial institution,
by means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises.

In violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349.

Count Two
Conspiracy to Engage in Monetary Transactions with Criminally Derived Proceeds

From at least in or around May 2020 through at least in or around October 2020, in the Western
District of New York and elsewhere, the defendants,

ADAM D. ARENA and AMANDA J. GLORIA,

knowingly and willfully, conspired and agreed together and with others known and unknown, to engage
and attempt to engage in a monetary transaction by, through, and to a financial institution, affecting
interstate commerce, in criminally derived property of a value greater than $10,000, such property having
been derived from specified unlawful activity, that is, bank fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States
Code, Section 1344(2), in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1957.

In violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1956(h).
Case 1:21-mj-05134-MJR Document1 Filed 05/28/21 Page 2 of 13

Count Three
Bank Fraud

On or about the date set forth below, in the Western District of New York and elsewhere, the
defendants,

ADAM D. ARENA and AMANDA J. GLORIA,

knowingly, and with intent to defraud, executed and attempted to execute a scheme and artifice to obtain
moneys, funds, credits, assets, securities, and other property owned by, and under the custody and control

of, a financial institution, by means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and
promises.

Count: Approximate Date Description of Execution

The submission from within the Western District of New York of an
3 August 13, 2020 | electronically signed Paycheck Protection Program loan agreement for
ARENA’s business, ADA Auto Group LLC, to Bank-1.

In violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1344(2) and 2.

Count Four
Engaging in Monetary Transactions with Criminally Derived Proceeds

On or about the date set forth below, in the Western District of New York and elsewhere, the
defendants,

ADAM D. ARENA and AMANDA J. GLORIA,

knowingly engaged in and attempted to engage in a monetary transaction, by, through, and to a financial
institution, affecting interstate commerce, in criminally derived property of a value greater than $10,000, as
described below, such property having been derived from a specified unlawful activity, that is, bank fraud,
in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344(2).

Count | Approximate Date Description of Monetary Transaction

Transfer from within the Western District of New York of approximately
4 September 11, 2020 | $24,135 from Bank-2 via check sent by ARENA for deposit in the bank
account of GLORIA’s business, WildWest Trucking LLC, at Bank-3.

In violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1957 and 2.
Case 1:21-mj-05134-MJR Document1 Filed 05/28/21 Page 3 of 13

Engaging in Monetary Transactions with Criminally Derived Proceeds

On or about the dates set forth below, in the Western District of New York and elsewhere, the
defendant,

ADAM D. ARENA,

knowingly engaged in and attempted to engage in a monetary transaction, by, through, and to a financial
institution, affecting interstate commerce, in criminally derived property of a value greater than $10,000, as

described below, such property having been derived from specified unlawful activity, that is, bank fraud, in
violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344(2).

Count | Approximate Date Description of Monetary Transaction

Transfer from within the Western District of New York of approximately
5 September 23, 2020 | $35,391 from Bank-2 via check toward purchasing a 2018 Chevrolet
Colorado.

Transfer from within the Western District of New York of approximately
6 September 30, 2020 | $12,500 from Bank-2 via check toward purchasing a 2018 Chevrolet
Traverse.

In violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1957 and 2.

This Criminal Complaintis based on these facts:

& Continued on the attached sheet. Jet ZL Sars

x

-

Chad W. Atrip
Special Agent

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Printed name and title

Sworn to and signed telephonically.

Date: M , 2021 .

Judge’s signature

Honorable Michael J. Roemer

City and State: Buffalo, New York United States Magistrate Judge
Printed name and title
Case 1:21-mj-05134-MJR Document1 Filed 05/28/21 Page 4 of 13

AFFIDAVIT

STATE OF NEW YORK )
COUNTY OF ERIE ) SS:
CITY OF BUFFALO )

Chad W. Artrip, being duly sworn, deposes and says:

1. I am a Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”). I am
currently assigned to the FBI’s Buffalo Division, Jamestown Resident Agency. This affidavit
is based upon your affiant’s personal knowledge, information provided by other law
enforcement personnel, and evidence obtained during this investigation. Because this
affidavit is submitted for the limited purpose of establishing probable cause, I have not
included each and every fact known to me concerning this investigation. Rather, I have set
forth only the facts that I believe are necessary to establish probable cause. Unless specifically
indicated, all dates described in this affidavit are approximate and inclusive, and all
statements or representations described in this affidavit are related in substance and in part.

2. I respectfully submit this affidavit in support of a Criminal Complaint charging
ADAM D. ARENA and AMANDA J. GLORIA with violations of Title 18, United States
Code, Section 1349 (Conspiracy to Commit Bank Fraud); Title 18, United States Code,
Section 1956(h) (Conspiracy to Engage in Monetary Transactions with Criminally Derived
Proceeds); Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1344 and 2 (Bank Fraud); and Title 18,
United States Code, Sections 1957 and 2 (Engaging in Monetary Transactions with
Criminally Derived Proceeds) (collectively, the “Enumerated Offenses”), and respectfully

request that the Court issue arrest warrants for these individuals.

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Overview

3. From at least in or around May 2020 through at least in or around October
2020, the Defendants, Adam D. Arena (“ARENA”) and Amanda J. Gloria (“GLORIA”),
acted together to fraudulently obtain and misuse at least one COVID-19 emergency relief loan
for approximately $1 million. To obtain this loan, ARENA and GLORIA submitted a
materially false and fraudulent loan application to a U.S. Small Business
Administration-approved lender on behalf of a business owned and controlled by ARENA.
This loan application contained materially false and fraudulent representations and
certifications about ARENA’s business and how the loan would be used. After fraudulently
obtaining the loan, ARENA and GLORIA misused the loan proceeds, including by ARENA
transferring approximately $25,000 to GLORIA that she spent on personal expenses, and by
ARENA transferring approximately $50,000 to a car dealership toward the purchase of two
cars.

Background

The Paycheck Protection Program

4. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act was a
federal law enacted in or around March 2020 to provide emergency financial assistance to
Americans suffering economic harm related to the COVID-19 pandemic. One form of relief
provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of forgivable loans to small businesses for

job retention and certain other expenses, through a program called the Paycheck Protection

Program (“PPP”),

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5. To obtain a PPP loan, a qualifying business was required to submit a loan
application signed by an authorized representative of the business. The loan application
required the authorized representative to acknowledge the PPP rules and make certain
affirmative certifications in order to be eligible to obtain the loan. In the loan application, the
authorized representative was required 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, businesses
applying for a PPP loan were required to provide documentation showing payroll expenses.

6. A PPP loan application was processed by a financial institution serving as a
participating lender. If an application was approved, the participating lender funded the loan
using its own money, which was one hundred percent guaranteed by a United States federal
agency called the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”). Data from the application,
including information about the business, the total amount of the loan, and the listed number
of employees, was transmitted by the lender to the SBA in the course of processing the loan.

7. PPP loans were required to be used on certain permissible business-related
expenses, including payroll costs, mortgage interest, rent, and utilities. Under the applicable
PPP rules, the interest and principal on the loan were eligible for forgiveness if the business
used the loan on these items within a designated period of time and used at least a certain

portion of the loan towards payroll expenses.

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The Defendants & Related Entities

8. ARENA was a resident of Great Valley, New York. ARENA owned and
controlled ADA Auto Group LLC (“ADA Auto Group”), a Florida-based business.

9. GLORIA was a resident of Altus, Oklahoma. GLORIA owned and controlled
WildWest Trucking LLC (“WildWest Trucking”), an Oklahoma-based business.

Relevant Banks

10. Bank-1 was a financial institution as that term is defined under 18 U.S.C. § 20
and 31 U.S.C. § 5312, and a PPP participating lender with a branch in Minnesota.

ll. Bank-2 was a financial institution as that term is defined under 18 U.S.C. § 20
and 31 U.S.C. § 5312, with a branch in Florida where ADA Auto Group held a business
account.

12. Bank-3 was a financial institution as that term is defined under 18 U.S.C. § 20
and 31 U.S.C. § 5312, with a branch in Oklahoma where Wild West Trucking held a business
account.

The Conspiracy and Scheme to Defraud

13. To qualify for a PPP loan, every application was required to certify that the
business seeking the loan “was in operation on February 15, 2020 and had employees for

whom it paid salaries and payroll taxes or paid independent contractors, as reported on

Form(s) 1099-MISC.”

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14. In or around May 2020, from within the Western District of New York,
ARENA reinstated his previously inactive business, ADA Auto Group, which had been
inactive since in or around 2018. Similarly, in or around May 2020, GLORIA reinstated her
previously inactive business, WildWest Trucking, which had been inactive since in or around
2017.

15. On or about July 25, 2020, GLORIA emailed an individual whose identity is
known to your affiant. In the email, GLORIA attached a document purporting to be a tax
form for ADA Auto Group, and wrote, “941 and 940,” which your affiant knows to be an
employer’s quarterly federal tax return (Form 941) and an employer’s federal unemployment
tax return (Form 940), respectively.

16. Onor about July 27, 2020, this individual responded to GLORIA. In the email,
this individual attached four documents purporting to be ADA Auto Group’s 2019 quarterly
Form 941 filings, and a document purporting to be ADA Auto Group’s 2019 Form 940 filing.
All of these purported filings were false and fraudulent because ADA Auto Group was not
operating in 2019, and was not reinstated until in or around May 2020.

17. Later on or about that same day, using an email address known to your affiant,
GLORIA emailed a PPP loan application to Bank-1 seeking an approximately $954,000 PPP
loan for ADA Auto Group (the “Application”). Among other contact information, the
Application named ARENA as the contact name, and listed “arenaadam@yahoo.com” as
the contact email address. Among other supporting documentation, the Application included
the four materially false and fraudulent documents purporting to be ADA Auto Group’s 2019
quarterly Form 941 filings, and the materially false and fraudulent document purporting to

be ADA Auto Group’s 2019 Form 940 filing. Among other certifications, the Application

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Case 1:21-mj-05134-MJR Document1 Filed 05/28/21 Page 9 of 13

falsely and fraudulently certified that ADA Auto Group had been in operation on February
15, 2020, and further certified that the loan would be used for business-related purposes, and
that if it were used for “unauthorized purposes, the federal government may hold me legally
liable, such as for charges of fraud.”

18. On or about July 30, 2020, GLORIA emailed another individual whose
identity is known to your affiant. In the email, with the subject “Companies I need employee
breakdown wages[,]” GLORIA wrote, “I need it to show that none of them received $100K”
and listed various companies, including “Ada Auto Group.” GLORIA then wrote, “I will
send each one in separate emails[.]”

19. Later on or about that same day, GLORIA emailed this same individual. In
the email, with the subject “Ada Auto Group[,]” GLORIA attached the same documents
purporting to be tax forms for ADA Auto Group that GLORIA had submitted to Bank-1
three days earlier, and wrote, “Need [fourth quarter] payroll breakdown and [first quarter]
2020 payroll breakdown. Let me know the cost for the breakdown.”

20. On or about August 6, 2020, the individual responded to GLORIA. In the
email, this individual attached five documents responsive to GLORIA’s prior email
purporting to be ADA Auto Group’s payroll reports. Later on or about that same day,
GLORIA supplemented the Application by submitting these documents to Bank-1. Again,
all of these documents were materially false and fraudulent because ARENA’Ss company was
not operating in the fourth quarter of 2019 or the first quarter of 2020, and was not reinstated

until in or around May 2020.

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21. The tax forms and payroll reports submitted by GLORIA on behalf of ADA
Auto Group were also materially false and fraudulent in other ways. For example, these
documents claimed that ADA Auto Group employed 50 people in 2019 with an annual
payroll of more than $4.4 million. Again, this was materially false and fraudulent because
ADA Auto Group was not operating in 2019, and was not reinstated until in or around May
2020.

22. Onor about August 10, 2020, Bank-1 emailed “arenaadam@yahoo.com.” In
the email, Bank-1 requested additional documentation for the loan, including wire
instructions for the bank account where Bank-1 was to send the PPP loan proceeds. Bank-1
wrote that once it received the requested additional documentation, it would send loan
documents to ARENA using a third-party electronic platform.

23. Later on or about that same day, from within the Western District of New
York, ARENA responded to Bank-1. In the email, ARENA provided wire instructions for
the bank account where Bank-1 was to send the PPP loan proceeds. Having reviewed these
Wire instructions, your affiant knows that ARENA provided the bank account for ADA Auto
Group’s business account at Bank-2.

2A. On or about August 13, 2020, from within the Western District of New York,
ARENA electronically signed and submitted the closing loan documents to Bank-1 using the
instructed third-party electronic platform. These documents included a material certification
that the PPP loan proceeds would be used for specified business-related purposes.

25. On around August 14, 2020, having received the closing loan documents from
ARENA, Bank-1 transferred the PPP loan proceeds—approximately $954,000—to ADA

Auto Group’s business account at Bank-2.

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26. Before ADA Auto Group’s business account at Bank-2 received the PPP loan
proceeds, the account had a balance of approximately $10,000. After the approximately
$954,000 in PPP loan proceeds were transferred to this account, ARENA conducted a series
of financial transactions of a value greater than $10,000 from within the Western District of
New York, including at least one transaction for GLORIA’s benefit and at least two
transactions for ARENA’s benefit toward the purchase of two cars.

27. On or about September 11, 2020, from within the Western District of New
York, ARENA mailed a check for approximately $24,135 from Bank-2 for deposit in the bank
account of WildWest Trucking at Bank-3. After receiving this money, GLORIA spent nearly
all of it. For example, on or about September 21, 2020—the day before the check was
deposited—the WildWest Trucking account at Bank-3 had a balance of approximately
$21,000. After the check was deposited, the WildWest Trucking account at Bank-3 had a
balance of approximately $46,000. From on or about September 22, 2020 through on or about
October 25, 2020, GLORIA spent approximately $43,000 from the WildWest Trucking
account at Bank-3, nearly all of which appears to have been for personal purchases, including
spa services, nail salons, gym memberships, clothing and retail stores, online retailers, dine-in
restaurants, and fast food.

28. On or about September 23, 2020, from within the Western District of New
York, ARENA drew a check for approximately $35,000 from Bank-2 toward purchasing a

car—a 2018 Chevrolet Colorado—from a car dealership in Depew, New York.

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29. On or about September 29, 2020, from within the Western District of New
York, ARENA drew another check for approximately $12,500 from Bank-2 toward
purchasing another car—a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse—from the same car dealership in Depew,
New York.

30. Investigators observed both cars parked at ARENA’s residence in Great Valley,
New York.

31. | Onor about October 17, 2020, from within the Western District of New York,
ARENA received messages from, and sent messages to, GLORIA, including:

GLORIA: Adam this is Amanda the one who handled your
ppp. What is going on with the last payment.

GLORIA: Is this Adam Arena with Ada Auto Sales

GLORIA: _ If this is Adam it would be in your best interest to
reply back. I am the processor that handled your

PPP

ARENA: This is Adam

GLORIA: Hey Adam my name is Amanda and I handled
your ppp processing. I also hv [sic] you approved
for other sba funding but I am needing to see
where the remaining balance of the fees are.

32. Also on or about October 17, 2020, using an email account known to your
affiant, GLORIA emailed ARENA at “arenaadam@yahoo.com.” In the email, GLORIA
wrote, “Adam[,] what is going on with the last payment??”

33. A review of the relevant accounts held at Bank-2 and Bank-3 indicates that

none of the fraudulently obtained PPP loan proceeds appear to have been used for

business-related expenses for ADA Auto Group.

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Conclusion
34. Wherefore, based upon the foregoing, your affiant respectfully submits that
there is probable cause to believe that ADAMD. ARENA and AMANDA J. GLORIA have
committed the Enumerated Offenses in the Criminal Complaint and for the Courtto issue the
requested arrest warrants for these individuals. To allow law enforcement personnel to
coordinate the execution of the arrest warrants and other related law enforcement activities,
I respectfully request that the Court seal the Criminal Complaint, this affidavit, and the arrest

warrants until further order of the Court.

Chad W. Atrip VY
Special Agent

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Sworn and subscribed to telephonically

fr
this. 5" day of May, 2021.

Honorable Michael J. Kemer
United States Magistrate Judge

for the Western District of New York

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