RIGHT SPEAK: Milledgeville Resident Found Guilty for Stealing Millions in Fraudulent COVID Relief Claims, Per Report; Bay Area Woman Sentenced For COVID-19 Relief Funds Scheme: DOJ, and other C-Virus related stories

Milledgeville resident found guilty for stealing millions in fraudulent COVID relief claims, per report

A Milledgeville resident faces 20 years in prison for COVID-19 relief fraud, spent on luxury cars.

A Milledgeville resident has been found guilty for stealing millions of dollars in COVID-19 relief funds, the U.S. District Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Georgia said in a press release.

Rosalend Way, 40, tried to get relief funds from the U.S. Small Business Administration, a release from the DA's office said.

The release said that most of the funds were used for "luxury cars and personal expenses."

Way was given a maximum of 20 years of prison and a $1 million fine after a three-day trial, according to the release.

The DA also said that James Frank Austin, 51, also pleaded guilty to committing fraud. Austin is facing a maximum of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

The release said that Way and Austin applied for a loan on behalf of Propel Opportunity Fund, a business that raises money from investors and uses it to prepare underserved neighborhoods for future development.

On the loan application, they said that the business needed the money to pay their employees, and to pay their mortgage interest and utilities, according to the release.

The release also said that they submitted a W-3 that was fraudulent, saying that the business paid $4,999,789 in wages in 2019. They also said that Way claimed 100% ownership of the business on the application.

They also said that IRS records showed that the business's 2019 tax return "showed that the company did not pay any salaries or wages." --->READ MORE HERE

Bay Area Woman Sentenced For COVID-19 Relief Funds Scheme: DOJ

A Bay Area woman who fraudulently obtained nearly $3 million through COVID relief funds has been sentenced to just under two years in federal prison, according to the United States Attorney's Office.

Santa Clara resident Cassie Will-Darnall, 53, pleaded guilty in January to one count each of bank fraud and wire fraud in connection with fraudulently submitting Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan applications during the pandemic.

Federal prosecutors say Will-Darnall submitted her first of two PPP loan applications in May 2020, claiming that her company had 10 employees and a monthly payroll of just over $387,500.

In reality, the company had no employees or payroll. But based on the information the 53-year-old provided, she was approved for a loan of just under $1 million, authorities said.

Two months later, Will-Darnall, acting as the CEO of another company, submitted a second loan application, claiming she had 35 employees and a monthly payroll of just over $816,500. She was again approved for a loan, this time for just over $1.8 million, according to federal prosecutors. --->READ MORE HERE