A North Carolina woman who lied to get a loan economic aid for him coronavirus and spent the money on shopping a Nieman Marcus, Nordstrom, Louis Vuitton and diamond shops, as reported by federal prosecutors in a statement.
Jasmine Johnnae Clifton, 24, appeared in court Monday and later was released on a $ 25,000 bond, according to a press release from the United States Law Firm for the Western District of North Carolina.
The indictment alleges that Clifton founded the company Jazzy Jas LLC, an online clothing retailer, in April 2019. On July 24, 2020, Clifton has submitted a fraudulent loan application to the United States Small Business Administration (SBA), despite the fact that Clifton had dissolved the company several months earlier.
However, you entered a fraudulent application that contained false income information and a false tax document you claim $ 350,000 in gross income in 12 months for your business. Early August Clifton managed to obtain $ 149,900 in emergency relief funds intended to help companies affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
On or around August 14, 2020, funds from the Loan for economic damage in disasters (EIDL) were deposited directly into Clifton’s bank account.
Two cases of fraud benefiting from the pandemic
After receiving the money, Clifton used the government funds to make purchases from numerous stores, including Nordstrom Ikea, Neiman Marcus, Rooms To Go, Louis Vuitton, Best Buy and other stores. He also shopped at several diamond stores.
On February 17, a grand jury charged Clifton with wire fraud in connection with disaster benefits and fraud in connection with a major disaster or emergency facilities. If convicted, Clifton faces 30 years for each charge and a possible combined fine of $ 1,250,000.
The Federal ley CARES It was enacted on March 29, 2020 and was intended to provide emergency financial assistance to millions of Americans suffering the economic fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic.
This law established several new interim programs and provided for the expansion of others, including the EIDL Program, a United States Small Business Administration (SBA) program that provides low-interest financing to small businesses, tenants, and homeowners. in regions affected by declared disasters.
