On Monday, a Brooklyn man was arrested for defrauding the federal Paycheck Protection Program of almost $2 million.
NBC News 4 Washington reports that Leon Miles, 51, is accused of applying for $1,904,593 in May on behalf of his limited liability company. According to court papers, he claimed the company had 50 employees and an average monthly payroll of $761,838. To support his application, Miles filed fake personal and business tax forms, which were never filed with the IRS. Miles reported no taxable income to the IRS and no wages paid to employees during the timeframe listed in the phony tax documents.
Instead of using the money for business, Miles used the money to purchase several high-end vehicles. He spent several hundred thousand on buying a 2020 Bentley Continental and a 2020 Cadillac Escalade. In total, Miles spent $350,000 on the cars.
The PPP offers financial assistance to small businesses as part of the CARES Act passed by Congress in March. The program provides forgivable loans to business owners for expenses like payroll costs during the coronavirus pandemic.
“At a time when so many are suffering from the devastating economic efforts of the ongoing pandemic, Miles allegedly enriched himself at the taxpayers’ expense, stealing funds that were intended by Congress to keep businesses afloat and workers on payroll,” Acting U.S. Attorney Seth D. DuCharme said.
Miles was scheduled to appear in a Brooklyn federal court on Monday.
Miles f’d up. However, I know for a fact that there are other businesses here in BK that misappropriated PPP funds. It ain’t just Black and Latinx business. What about the businesses here in BK that lied on their applications. Folks are using PPP money to buy cars, pay rent on vacation homes, and shit. Why not convict them too.