Illinois’s East St. Louis. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Friday that three individuals from Metro East were charged on 13 counts by a federal grand jury for their alleged involvement in a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan fraud scam.
Richard Scott Myers, 63, of Edwardsville, Glenn Sunnquist, 53, of Swansea, and Dana C. Howard, 52, of O Fallon, are charged with embezzling more than $1.4 million in government funds meant for pandemic assistance. In addition to the accusations of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud, Howard and Myers are also charged with bankruptcy fraud and making false claims.
In April 2020, Howard and Myers, co-owners of Zoie, LLC and Zade Trucking, both situated in East St. Louis, reportedly obtained a $1,426,500 PPP loan on false pretenses, stating that the money would be utilized for operating and payroll costs. Prosecutors claim the funds were misappropriated for their own profit and to support another company they owned, which is against the program’s rules.
According to court filings, Howard and Myers concealed $450,000 in available funds when they filed for bankruptcy later in 2020. They made a false claim that they were not involved in bankruptcy proceedings when they asked for a second PPP loan in January 2021, totaling more than $1.4 million. The companies’ bookkeeper, Sunnquist, is charged with creating fake invoices and altering spending records in order to bolster a loan forgiveness application that the Small Business Administration (SBA) rejected in September 2022.
According to FBI Springfield Special Agent in Charge Christopher Johnson, investigations into COVID-19 relief fraud are still a top priority, and this plan is an outrageous waste of pandemic relief monies. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Burke is prosecuting the case, and the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation are in charge of the investigation.
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