U.S. Department of Labor OIG, Boston Woman Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Obtaining COVID-Relief Funds (USAO D-MA 09/04/2024) (2024-09-11)

Summary

A September 4, 2024 press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts announcing that Jameela Gross pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in connection with the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The release describes Gross as a Heath Street Gang member/associate arrested in February 2024 along with other members and associates. According to the release, in April 2021 Gross submitted a PPP loan application with false statements about the purported business's 2020 gross income and the purpose of the loan, supported by false tax records, and received approximately $18,750. U.S. District Court Judge William G. Young scheduled sentencing, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Hoefle and Lucy Sun are prosecuting.

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Full text

PRESS RELEASE



Boston Woman Pleads Guilty to
Fraudulently Obtaining COVID-
Relief Funds
Wednesday, September 4, 2024


For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Massachusetts

Defendant was Boston-area gang member/associate

BOSTON – A Boston woman pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston in
connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain pandemic-related relief funds from the
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) made available under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief,
and Economic Security Act.

Jameela Gross, 28, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. U.S. District Court Judge
William G. Young scheduled sentencing for Dec. 5, 2024. Gross, a Heath Street Gang
member/associate, was arrested in February 2024 along with over 40 Heath Street Gang
members/associates, who were charged with racketeering conspiracy, drug trafficking,
firearms charges and financial frauds, including COVID-related fraud.

In April 2021, Gross submitted a fraudulent PPP loan application on behalf of her
purported business. The application contained multiple false statements, including false
representations regarding the purported business’s total gross income in 2020 and the
purpose of the loan. Gross also submitted false tax records in support of her loan
applications. Based on the fraudulent application, Gross received approximately $18,750,
which she then spent on non-business-related expenses.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act created a temporary loan
program directed at small businesses called the Paycheck Protection Program. PPP loans
were processed by private financial institutions and fully guaranteed by the U.S. Small
Business Administration. If the small business used the loan funds for approved
purposes, such as payroll, the loan could be forgiven by the financial institution and paid
for by the U.S. Small Business Administration.
The charge of wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three
years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss
from the offense. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon
the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a
sentence in a criminal case.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge
for Homeland Security Investigations in New England; James M. Ferguson, Special Agent
in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field
Division; Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox; Jonathan Mellone, Special Agent in
Charge of Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General; and Harry T. Chavis Jr,
Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations made
the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Hoefle and Lucy Sun of the
Organized Crime & Gang Unit are prosecuting the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF)
operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal
organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven,
multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be
found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement
Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with
agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-
related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most
culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with
administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting
and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and
techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing
information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information
on the Department’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.

Updated September 4, 2024

Topics
CORONAVIRUS

FINANCIAL FRAUD
Component
USAO - Massachusetts


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