Laplace Resident Sentenced to Twelve Months for Preparing and Submitting Fraudulent Applications for Cares Act Financial Assistance and Post-Hurricane Ida Disaster Assistance
Summary
Lynn Schofield, 60, of LaPlace, La. was sentenced on March 19, 2024 by U.S. District Judge Wendy B. Vitter to twelve (12) months in prison, with six (6) months to be spent in home detention, and three (3) years of supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced. The court ordered $282,650 in restitution to the Small Business Administration. According to court documents, Lynn Schofield and two children, Bashir and Munira Schofield, filed PPP and EIDL applications with overinflated gross receipts. Lynn Schofield applied for AfroTouch, Inc. and Afromerica Touch 360, LLC, and a modification request with false information about Afromerica Touch 360 brought an additional $145,000. Lynn Schofield also received over $50,000 in Hurricane IDA disaster assistance without being entitled to it.
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Full text
NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that LYNN SCHOFIELD , age 60, a resident of LaPlace, La., was sentenced on March 19, 2024 by United States District Judge Wendy B. Vitter to twelve (12) months in prison, with six (6) months to be spent in home detention, after previously pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 371 and 1343. Judge Vitter also sentenced SCHOFIELD to three (3) years of supervised release and ordered her to repay $282,650 in restitution to the Small Business Administration (“SBA”). SCHOFIELD conspired to prepare and file fraudulent applications for loans related to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). SCHOFIELD’ s son, Bashir Schofield (“Bashir”), and daughter, Munira Schofield (“Munira”), have also been charged for their roles in the offense. According to court documents, LYNN SCHOFIELD , Bashir, and Munira submitted applications to fraudulently obtain money from Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and Economic Injury Disaster (EIDL) loans. Each defendant submitted at least one fraudulent loan application. All applications falsely represented that the applicant had a sole proprietorship and generated substantial income from the business by overinflating gross receipts. The entities either did not exist or earned far less money than reported. They also mis-represented that the loan proceeds were for business purposes, when, in fact, the defendants intended to use the money for personal purposes. LYNN SCHOFIELD submitted fraudulent applications for two entities she claimed to own, AfroTouch, Inc., and Afromerica Touch 360, LLC. She also submitted a modification request that contained false information about Afromerica Touch 360, LLC, that resulted in her fraudulent receipt of an additional $145,000 from the SBA. Further, LYNN SCHOFIELD defrauded the SBA in connection with Hurricane IDA disaster assistance. As a result, she received over $50,000 to which she was not entitled. In total, LYNN SCHOFIELD admitted that this conspiracy caused an approximate $282,650 loss to the SBA. For more information on the Department of Justice’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus . 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 . U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Jordan Ginsberg, Chief of the Public Integrity Unit, was in charge of the prosecution.
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