Sharnae Every, a 30-year-old former Louisiana resident, has been sentenced to 41 months in prison for her role in creating and submitting over 110 fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. The sentence, handed down by United States District Judge Carl J. Barbier, also includes a three-year term of supervised release and a mandatory special assessment fee of $100, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The investigation, which was initiated based on a referral from the COVID-19 Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC), revealed Every's involvement in preparing fake business documentation for PPP loans. She had to most effectively conduct her scheme by advertising on Facebook under various aliases to entice individuals into the fraudulent activity. The charges state that Every generated false invoices and tax forms under the invented business name "Natural Hair Afro, LLC" for these PPP loan applications.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office press release, every person profited from her scheme by charging individuals up to $120 for preparing and submitting the fraudulent applications and then demanding approximately $3,500 once the loans were funded, with payments mostly being received through mobile payment apps such as Cash App. Investigators uncovered that the financial transactions were processed through her personal accounts and, at times, through her boyfriend's account.
The PRAC Fraud Task Force, an amalgam of agents from 15 Inspectors General offices, was established to rigorously police the more than $5 trillion in COVID-19 relief funds. In this case, their work was instrumental in bringing Every to justice. The Task Force's mission is to "identify major risks that cross program and agency boundaries to detect fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement in the more than $5 trillion in COVID-19 spending" in pandemic response funds. The collaborative nature of this initiative was highlighted by the involvement of various agencies, including Homeland Security Investigations and the United States Secret Service's Cyber Fraud Task Force, in investigating Every's case, according to the press release.
Assistant United States Attorneys Brian M. Klebba, Chief of the Financial Crimes Unit, and Edward Rivera, the COVID-19 Fraud Coordinator, led the prosecution of this case. The authorities continue to urge the public to report any suspected fraud involving COVID-19 by contacting the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline or through their online complaint form.
