Indictment — United States v. Javar Lajuan Clark, Middle District of North Carolina (Document 1)

Summary

An indictment filed February 27, 2023 as Document 1 in United States v. Javar Lajuan Clark, Case 1:23-cr-00079-UA, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina. The grand jury charges that on or about July 7, 2020 the defendant submitted an EIDL application for "Handy Works by J Clark" claiming $280,920 in revenues and ten employees, when the business had no apparent operations. It states the SBA deposited $130,400 in EIDL loan funds and $10,000 in advance funds into a personal credit union account, and that the funds were used for personal expenses including a residential home. Count One charges wire fraud under Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343, and Count Two charges money laundering under Section 1957 for a $22,500 cash withdrawal on or about November 2, 2020. The forfeiture allegation lists real property in Winston-Salem and a money judgment.

Summary drafted by a model from the text of the original file linked on this page and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used

Full text

Text recognized from a scanned document; may contain errors.

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
FEB 27 2023

IN THIS OFFICE
Clerk U. S. District Court
Greensboro, N.C,

JAVAR LAJUAN CLARK

The Grand Jury charges:
Background
At all times relevant hereto:

A. JAVAR LAJUAN CLARK was a resident of Forsyth, North
Carolina, within the Middle District of North Carolina.

B. An employer identification number (“EIN”) was a nine-digit
number assigned by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) and was used to
identify taxpayers who were required to file certain business tax returns.

C. The United States Small Business Administration (“SBA”) was an
executive-branch agency of the United States government that provided
support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the SBA was to
maintain and strengthen the nation’s economy by enabling the establishment
and viability of small businesses and by assisting in the economic recovery of

communities after disasters.

Case 1:23-cr-00079-UA Document1 Filed 02/27/23 Page 1 of 9
D.« As part of that effort, the SBA enabled and provided loans through
banks, credit unions, and other lenders that had government-backed
guarantees. The SBA also provided direct loans.

E. 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 negative economic effects caused
by the COVID-19 pandemic.

F. The Economic Injury Disaster Loan “EIDL”) program was an SBA
program that provided low-interest financing to small businesses, renters, and
homeowners in regions affected by declared disasters.

G. The CARES Act authorized the SBA to provide loans (““EIDL
loans”) of up to $2 million to eligible small businesses experiencing substantial
financial disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the CARES
Act authorized the SBA to issue advances of up to $10,000 to small businesses
within three days of applying for an EIDL (“EIDL advances”). The amount of
the EIDL advance was determined by the number of employees the applicant
certified having. The advances did not have to be repaid.

H.:. Inorder to obtain an EIDL loan and advance, a qualifying business
was required to submit an application to the SBA and provide information

about its operations, such as the number of employees, gross revenues for the

2

Case 1:23-cr-00079-UA Document1 Filed 02/27/23 Page 2 of 9
12-month period preceding the disaster, and cost of goods sold in the 12-month
period preceding the disaster. In the case of EIDL loans for COVID-19 relief,
the 12-month period was that 12-month period preceding January 31, 2020.
The business must have been operating as of February 1, 2020 to qualify for a
loan. The applicant was also required to certify that all of the information in
the application was true and correct to the best of the applicant’s knowledge,
and agree in the Loan Authorization and Agreement that EIDL funds would
be used solely to alleviate economic injury caused by the disaster.

I. EIDL applications were submitted directly to the SBA and
processed by the agency with support from a government contractor. The
amount of the loan, if the application was approved, was determined based, in
part, on the information provided by the application about employment,
revenue, and cost of goods, as described above. EIDL loan and advance funds
were issued directly by the SBA.

J. Pursuant to the provisions governing the EIDL program, loan
proceeds could only be used on certain permissible expenses. More specifically,
the business could use EIDL loans and advances to pay fixed debts of the
business, payroll of the business, accounts payable of the business, and other
bills of the business that could have been paid had the COVID-19 disaster not

occurred.

Case 1:23-cr-00079-UA Document1 Filed 02/27/23 Page 3 of 9
The Scheme and Artifice

1 From in or about May 2020, continuing up to and including in or
about July 2020, the exact dates to the Grand Jurors unknown, in the County
of Forsyth, in the Middle District of North Carolina, and elsewhere, JAVAR
LAJUAN CLARK devised and intended to devise a scheme to unlawfully
enrich himself by submitting, and causing to be submitted, a fraudulent loan
application to the SBA in order to obtain funds through the EIDL program.

2. It was a part of the scheme and artifice to defraud that on or about
May 21, 2020, JAVAR LAJUAN CLARK submitted, or caused to be submitted,
an application for an EIN through the IRS online portal. CLARK used this EIN
to apply for funds from the SBA on behalf of “Handy Works by J Clark.”

3. It was a further part of the scheme and artifice to defraud that on
or about July 7, 2020, JAVAR LAJUAN CLARK submitted, or caused to be
submitted, a fraudulent EIDL application to the SBA (““EIDL Application —
0765”) in the name of “Handy Works By J Clark.” In this application, JAVAR
LAJUAN CLARK falsely affirmed that in the twelve months prior to the date
of disaster, “Handy Works by J Clark” grossed $280,920 in revenues, incurred
cost of goods sold of $0, and employed ten individuals, when in truth and in

fact, as he then well knew, “Handy Works by J Clark” had no apparent

Case 1:23-cr-00079-UA Document1 Filed 02/27/23 Page 4 of 9
business operations during the covered time period and did not gross $280,920
in revenues.

A. As a result of the fraudulent representations, the SBA approved
EIDL Application 0765 and deposited $130,400 in EIDL loan funds and
$10,000 in EIDL advance funds into a personal account held in JAVAR
LAJUAN CLARK’s name at Winston-Salem Federal Credit Union, with a
member identification ending in ***97.

5. It was a further part of the scheme and artifice to defraud that
JAVAR LAJUAN CLARK falsely represented that the funds would be used for
permissible business expenses, when in truth and in fact, the loan funds were

used for personal expenses, including the purchase of a residential home.

COUNT ONE
(Wire Fraud)

6. Paragraphs 1 through 5 are incorporated by reference as if fully
set forth herein.

1. On or about July 21, 2020, in the Middle District of North Carolina,
and elsewhere, JAVAR LAJUAN CLARK, having knowingly devised and
intended to devise a scheme and artifice to defraud, and to obtain money and
property by means of materially false and fraudulent neonate,

representations, and promise, did transmit and cause to be transmitted by

Case 1:23-cr-00079-UA Document1 Filed 02/27/23 Page 5 of 9
means of wire communications in interstate commerce, writings, signs,
signals, pictures, and sounds for the purpose of executing such scheme and
artifice, to wit: a wire transfer that was routed in interstate commerce from
the SBA in Colorado to Clark’s bank account at Winston-Salem Federal Credit
Union.

All in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343.

COUNT TWO
(Money Laundering)

8. Paragraphs 1 through 7 are incorporated by reference as if fully
set forth herein.

9. On or about November 2, 2020, in the Middle District of North
Carolina and elsewhere, the defendant, JAVAR LAJUAN CLARK did
knowingly engage and attempt to engage in a monetary transaction in
criminally derived property of a value greater than $10,000, and which in fact,
was derived from specified unlawful activity, namely, the defendant withdrew
$22,500 in cash, which funds in fact were derived from wire fraud, as more
fully set forth in Count One of this Indictment, in violation of Title 18, United
States Code, Section 1343.

All in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1957.

Case 1:23-cr-00079-UA Document1 Filed 02/27/23 Page 6 of 9
1,

FORFEITURE ALLEGATION

The allegations contained in this Indictment are hereby realleged

and incorporated by reference for the purpose of alleging forfeiture pursuant

to Title 18, United States Code, Sections 981(a)(1)(A) and 981(a)(1)(C), and

Title 28, United States Code, Section 2461(c).

2.

Upon conviction of one or more of the offenses charged in Counts

One or Two of this Indictment, the defendant, JAVAR LAJUAN CLARK, shall

forfeit to the United States any property, real or personal, which constitutes or

is derived from proceeds traceable to such offense, or is involved in or traceable

to such offense.

3.

The property to be forfeited may include, but is not limited to:

a. The real property known as 408 E. Sixteenth Street, Winston-
Salem, NC 27105, with all appurtenances and improvements
thereon, and described as follows:

All that certain lot or parcel of land situated in the City of Winston-
Salem, Forsyth County, North Carolina and more particularly
described as follows:

BEGINNING at a stake on the South side of Legerwood Street,
said stake being 440 feet East of Patterson Avenue; thence
Southwardly 140 feet to an iron stake on the North side of Alley,
thence Westwardly along said Alley 41 feet to an iron stake; thence
Northwardly on a line parallel with the first line 140 feet to a stake
on the South side of Legerwood Stieet; thence Eastwardly with
said Street 41 feet to the beginning; being part of Lot 12 on the
map of Eagle Land Company Property and being the same
property as that described in Deed to D.A. Bullard recorded in

Case 1:23-cr-00079-UA Document1 Filed 02/27/23 Page 7 of 9
Book 176, Page 154, in’the Office of Register of Deeds of Forsyth
County, North Carolina; and also being the same as part of Lot 12
on the Map of J.L. Patterson Property recorded in Plat Book 1,
Page 45, Office of the Register of Deeds, Forsyth County, North
Carolina.

b. A money judgment, in an amount to be determined,
representing the value of the property subject to forfeiture as a
result of such offense.

4. If any of the property described above as being subject to forfeiture
as a result of any act or omission of the defendant cannot be located upon the
exercise of due diligence, has been transferred or sold to or deposited with a
third person, has been placed beyond the jurisdiction of the Court, has been
substantially diminished in value, or has been commingled with other property
which cannot be divided without difficulty, it is the intent of the United States,
pursuant to Title 21, United States Code, Section 853(p), as incorporated by
Title 18, United States Code, Section 982(b)(1), and Title 28, United States
Code, Section 2461(c), to seek forfeiture of any other property of said defendant

up to the value of the above forfeitable property.

Case 1:23-cr-00079-UA Document1 Filed 02/27/23 Page 8 of 9
All pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, Sections 981(a)(1)(A) and
981(a)(1)(C), Rule 32.2, Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, and Title 28,

United States Code, Section 2461(c).

DATED: February 27, 2023
SANDRA J. HAIRSTON
United States Attorney

BY: ASHLEY E. WAID
Assistant United States Attorney

A TRUE BILL:

Case 1:23-cr-00079-UA Document1 Filed 02/27/23 Page 9 of 9


File and source

File

1-indictment-javar-lajuan-clark.pdf

Size

3,023,022 bytes

SHA-256

9237627712c7344729acfdd853ebacda8099e4da5947e7a8ee66cc7861f0199e

Our copy

1-indictment-javar-lajuan-clark.pdf

Original

archive.org