Wendell Smallwood Jr., an ex-Eagles player, faces serious allegations of defrauding COVID-19 relief programs. Smallwood is accused of submitting false loan applications and inflating tax returns to benefit unjustly from federal pandemic aid, as reported by PhillyVoice.
Specific claims made by federal prosecutors, as noted by the Delaware Online, allege that Smallwood exploited the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Constructing a scheme with others during the pandemic, he is said to have misdirected a sum of $46,000 towards personal expenses rather than the intended support for his business ventures.
The former NFL running back is also allegedly involved in kickback schemes, receiving individual payments ranging from $4,000 to $12,000, linked to approximately $269,000 in fraudulently obtained PPP loans, according to reports by both PhillyVoice and Delaware Online. In addition to the loan fraud, Smallwood faces allegations of causing bogus tax refunds to be issued by the IRS. Prosecutors accuse him of doctoring returns amounting to nearly $222,000, leading to over $110,000 in fraudulent refunds.
In a seeming effort to mitigate the severity of the legal repercussions, his attorney, Mark B. Sheppard, assured cooperation with the investigation. "Wendell has cooperated fully with this investigation. We will have more to say when we appear in December," Sheppard told Delaware Online, reflecting a forward-looking approach to the upcoming court proceedings. Charged with wire fraud and conspiracy, Smallwood expects to attend a plea hearing by late December, where the prosecutions will be weighed in federal court.
The case against Smallwood is just one example in the vast landscape of COVID-19-related fraud, with more than 3,500 federal charges linked to pandemic relief misdeeds. This scale of deceit stands in stark contrast to a society in desperate need of legitimate aid, as funds meant for struggling businesses and individuals were diverted by fraudsters. The Justice Department's COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force reported recovering over $1.4 billion in stolen funds, as stated by 6abc. However, this recovery represents only a fraction of the estimated $200 billion potentially tied to fraudulent COVID-19 relief activity, as per the Office of Inspector General for the SBA.
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