A Massachusetts gym owner threw a sucker punch at Uncle Sam, fraudulently scoring a knockout with multiple COVID relief loans before getting floored by the federal court in Boston. Daniel Olivar, 44, the owner of Sonny’s Boxing and Fitness in Middleton, was sentenced to a split decision of six months in prison and three years of supervised release, the first six months to be spent in home confinement. He's also on the hook for $50,844 in restitution after pleading guilty to a quadruple jolt of wire fraud charges.
In a blow-by-blow account detailed by the Justice Department, Olivar was shown to have willfully forged his way into receiving undeserved Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds and Economic Injury Disaster Loans. He falsely purported to be knocked out of a job from Gold’s Gym, jabbing at the State of Massachusetts for unemployment benefits he had no right to claim to begin with. His underhanded tactics to quickly grab ill-gotten government grants stretched from January 2020 to May 2021.
Judge Indira Talwani delivered Olivar's sentence, cementing the outcome of his fraudulent march through the CARES Act's financial ring. Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy accompanied by Jodi Cohen, the FBI’s bigwig in Boston, took to the press, announcing the sentencing that has Olivar hanging up his gloves behind bars. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura J. Kaplan, representing the government's corner, prosecuted the heavyweight case.
The Department of Justice's uppercut has been combating these economic body blows since the pandemic first rang the bell on fraudsters trying to illegally profit. The COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force, founded in May 2021, has been working diligently to put fighters like Olivar against the ropes, training an eagle-eye focus to prevent and punish pandemic-related deception. Snitches looking to tip-off about similar schemes are encouraged to contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud. Just don't expect to to remain ringside, as whistleblowers must throw their punches through calls or an online form.
