SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. — A Spokane resident pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining more than $50,000 in COVID-19 relief funds.
According to a written statement by the U.S. Attorney's Office (USAO), Roshon Edward Thomas, 52, of Spokane, has pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining at least $54,900 in COVID-19 relief funding through two Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) loans.
According to the USAO statement, court documents and information disclosed during court proceedings showed Thomas obtained the loans in July and August of 2020 for a purported tattoo parlor and a clothing design company.
Thomas pled guilty to submitting false and fraudulent claims to the U.S. and admitted to using false and fraudulent information to obtain EIDL funding for both companies. The charge could carry a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison.
The EIDL program, under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act, was signed into law on March 27, 2020, by former U.S. President Donald Trump. The program provided low-interest loans that could be deferred until the conclusion of the pandemic to provide “bridge” funding for small businesses to maintain their operations during the pandemic.
Judge Rosanna Malouf Peterson accepted Thomas’ guilty plea and set his sentencing for Aug. 16, 2022, in Spokane.
Thomas' case is part of the COVID-19 Relief Fraud Strike Force launched by the U.S. Attorney’s Office earlier this year.
“We created the COVID-19 Fraud Strike Force because combatting pandemic-related fraud and holding those accountable who abused these programs is critical to the strength and safety of our community in Eastern Washington," U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington Vanessa R. Waldref said in a written statement.
This is not the first time a Washington resident pleaded guilty to fraudulent COVID-19 relief funds. The U.S. Department of Justice has publicly charged 474 defendants with criminal offenses based on fraud schemes connected to the COVID-19 pandemic. These cases involve attempts to obtain over $569 million from the U.S. government and unsuspecting individuals through fraud and have been brought in 56 federal districts around the country.
Waldref said they continue working together with law enforcement partners to vigorously prosecute those who abuse and misuse COVID-19 relief funding and to strengthen the communities by protecting small and local businesses.