Ikponmwosa Pero Erhinmwinrose and three other defendants have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Colorado on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. The indictment alleges that they fraudulently obtained over $7.7 million in loans and grants from programs authorized by Congress under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
The CARES Act was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to small businesses in the United States that were suffering from economic harm caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The programs in question included the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program.
Erhinmwinrose and his co-conspirators, referred to as the Fraud Ring, allegedly used the names and identifying information of others to register fraudulent corporate entities with state governments, obtain fraudulent employer tax identification numbers from the IRS, create fraudulent bank accounts, falsify payroll and employment data, and fabricate tax and bank documents. These actions were taken to mislead lenders and fraudulently obtain loans and grants while concealing their own involvement in the scheme.
The indictment further alleges that the Fraud Ring also conspired to launder the fraudulently obtained funds, including federal tax refunds and benefits from unemployment programs in several states.
The investigation into this case involves several agencies, including the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, the SBA Office of the Inspector General, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of the Inspector General, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
It is important to note that the charges in the indictment are allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Craig Fansler.
