Former Sweetwater commissioner sentenced to 18 months for $948K PPP fraud
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Key Points(5)
- A former City of Sweetwater commissioner has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for fraudulently obtaining nearly $950,000 through the Paycheck Protection Program.
- Sophia Lacayo, 48, of Doral, was sentenced by U.S.
- District Judge Darrin P.
- Gayles after pleading guilty to wire fraud, the U.S.
- Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida announced.
A former City of Sweetwater commissioner has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for fraudulently obtaining nearly $950,000 through the Paycheck Protection Program.
Sophia Lacayo, 48, of Doral, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles after pleading guilty to wire fraud, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida announced.
Sweetwater, informally known as "Little Managua", " is located in Miami-Dade County, Florida.
According to court records, Lacayo submitted or caused fraudulent PPP loan applications to be submitted on behalf of three companies to obtain pandemic-relief funds for which they were not eligible.
Lacayo owned Lacayo Trade Group Inc. and exercised significant control over QC Tax Pro Systems LLC and QC Trade Group LLC, prosecutors said.
The loan applications allegedly inflated the companies’ payroll expenses, employee numbers, revenues and wages paid. Prosecutors said Lacayo supported the applications with falsified documents, including fraudulent IRS forms, fabricated payroll records and a falsified bank statement.
The scheme resulted in approximately $948,325 in PPP loans being issued to Lacayo and the companies, according to federal prosecutors.
The total included two loans of $251,465 each obtained on behalf of QC Tax, a $117,500 loan for QC Trade and a $327,895 loan for Lacayo Trade.
“Sophia Lacayo exploited an emergency program intended to keep workers employed and small businesses alive, using fabricated tax forms and false payroll records to obtain nearly $950,000,” U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones said.
“As a former elected official, she knew the importance of public trust but chose fraud instead. This sentence holds her accountable for stealing pandemic-relief funds from American taxpayers.”
At sentencing, the court noted that Lacayo had already repaid more than $444,000 in advance restitution, which was used to reimburse lenders for the fraudulent loans.
A hearing to determine how much additional restitution Lacayo must pay is scheduled for Oct. 7.
The case was investigated by the FBI’s Miami Field Office, the U.S. Secret Service’s Miami Field Office and the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General.
