Six individuals have been indicted for allegedly orchestrating a wide-ranging scheme to fraudulently obtain more than $34 million in federal COVID-19 relief funds, U.S. Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne announced Thursday.
Elaine A. Escoe, 40; Alfred L. Davis, 51; Gino J. Jourdan, 37; Cher L. Davis, 53; Latoya T. Clark, 39; and James G. McGhow, 69, face charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and multiple counts of wire fraud and money laundering.
Federal prosecutors allege that between May 2020 and November 2021, the defendants submitted over 90 fraudulent applications for aid through federal programs, including the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL), Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF), and Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG). The applications reportedly included falsified IRS tax documents, fabricated bank statements, and misrepresented employee numbers, payroll costs, and business revenues.
According to the indictment, the scheme led to the disbursement of approximately $29.1 million in PPP funds, $3.8 million in SVOG funds, and $1.2 million in RRF funds. Once the funds were secured, the defendants allegedly funneled the money through businesses they controlled, wrote checks to each other, withdrew large sums of cash, and used blank, signed checks to hide the source of the money.
Each defendant faces up to 20 years in prison for each wire fraud count and up to 10 years for each money laundering count. Sentencing will be determined by a federal district judge based on U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other legal factors.
The FBI’s West Palm Beach office led the investigation, with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Bailyn is prosecuting the case, with support from Legal Administrative Specialist Matthew Neff.
