Press Release
☷How the FBI is Combating COVID 19 Related Fraud
Federal Bureau of Investigation ( By Press Release office)
Jan 14,2024
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This Op - Ed by FBI Springfield Special Agent in Charge David Nanz was published in the State Journal Register . To help out with the financial struggles caused by the COVID - 19 mess , the U . S . Government gave the green light to around $5 trillion in relief programs . Some of these programs were the Paycheck Protection Program ( PPP ) , which let businesses ask for loans that could be forgiven to cover payroll and other costs; the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program ( EIDL ) , which allowed businesses to apply for low interest loans to help with day - to - day expenses; and Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation ( FPUC ) , which was meant for folks who lost their jobs because of the pandemic . Unfortunately , a ton of people decided to steal from these programs by sending in fake applications . The amount of theft was absolutely massive . According to the inspector general of the U . S . Small Business Administration , they estimate that $136 billion was fraudulently taken from the EIDL program and $64 billion from the PPP program . As for the FPUC program , the U . S . Government Accountability Office estimates that over $100 billion was stolen . When you add all of these losses together , it becomes the biggest case of fraud in history . The worst part is that American taxpayers will ultimately have to foot the bill for these losses . And to make matters even worse , since most of the money was borrowed by the U . S . Government , our kids and even grandkids will be the ones responsible for paying it back . How did those fraudsters blow their stolen cash? Well , some of them splurged on fancy stuff like real estate , swanky rides like Lambos and Ferraris , high - end goodies like Rolexes and bling , gold coins , and diamonds . Meanwhile , others went wild at strip joints , hit up Vegas for gambling sprees , chartered private jets , and went all out on dream vacations . The FBI has been working hard to make sure these thieves are held accountable . We ' ve been teaming up with our partners and using smart strategies to open up thousands of investigations all over the country to target COVID - 19 related fraud . Right here in the FBI ' s Springfield Field Office , which covers central and southern Illinois , our dedicated special agents , intelligence analysts , and forensic accountants are working on cases that have led to the charging of many individuals . Just recently , we caught 19 U . S . Postal Service employees and former employees in central Illinois who were scamming the PPP by making false claims about their expenses and businesses . In another investigation , three guys from Peoria were found guilty of defrauding the PPP by pretending to run barber shops . But the thing is , none of them actually had a registered barber shop , employees , payroll , or any real business expenses , and none of them were even licensed barbers . In addition to making sure criminals face consequences , the FBI ' s investigations on COVID - 19 related fraud also deliver a crucial message: no one can get away with stealing money from American taxpayers .
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