Source: Office of United States Attorneys
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., woman was sentenced in federal court today for filing a false claim as part of a scheme to fraudulently receive approximately $62,811.75 in COVID-19 relief funds from the government.
Robin Brooks, 55, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Greg Kays to 15 months’ imprisonment and ordered to pay $62,811.75 in restitution to the Small Business Administration (SBA) and to Jackson County, Missouri.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act was a federal law enacted in or around March 2020 and designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who were suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. As a part of the CARES Act, the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) was created to provided forgivable loans to small businesses that were administered by the Small Business Administration (SBA) through corresponding financial institutions. The purpose of PPP was to provide support to small businesses and assist their payroll to their employees during the coronavirus pandemic.
In her guilty plea, Brooks admitted that, in 2021, she two submitted fraudulent applications to the Small Business Administration for the loans using fake businesses. In fact, Brooks’ business never actually existed and did not have any employees. In a related scheme, Brooks submitted approximately $30,345 in false invoices to Jackson County, Missouri, to receive CARES Act Funds for a non-profit organization she created to provide food to people negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Based on these false claims, the SBA issued payments totaling $32,466 to Brooks and Jackson County issued payments totaling $30,345.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Venneman. It was investigated by United States Secret Service.