A Tulsa man pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court to aggravated identity theft in connection with a COVID-19-related business loan he sought from a local bank.
Adam Winston James, 45, admitted in Tulsa federal court to his part in a scheme to fraudulently obtain a Paycheck Protection Program loan.
Federal prosecutors alleged James and Rafael Maturino, 40, worked together on the PPP loan scheme. The pair were charged separately in 2020 with filing false loan applications for the business loans.
Maturino was sentenced June 1 to serve one year and one day in federal prison after he pleaded guilty in March to bank fraud after illegally receiving nearly $100,000 in PPP loans.
James was alleged to have applied for a PPP loan May 6, 2020, on behalf of a company he claimed to own and operate, Velocity Innovations LLC. As part of the application, James used the identification of at least seven other people without their knowledge, fraudulently claiming they were employees of Velocity Innovations LLC, prosecutors alleged.
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James received $125,900 from the bank as a result of the scheme,according to prosecutors.
James, who is free on bond, is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 30.
The CARES Act is a federal law enacted on March 29, 2020, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses, through the PPP.