A federal grand jury has returned a 12-count indictment charging a Sycamore, Georgia, resident with bank fraud, money laundering and making false statements related to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Officials indicted Anthony C. Boncimino, 46, this month with four counts of bank fraud, four counts of money laundering and four counts of making false statements.
This, according to a press release that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia published this week.
“According to the filed indictment, Boncimino allegedly submitted at least four fraudulent loan applications to the Small Business Administration (SBA) and third-party banks for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans on behalf of shell companies, although these companies suffered no losses,” according to the press release.
“The government alleges that these businesses either did not exist, did not conduct business or only existed on paper. As a result of the fraud, Boncimino obtained approximately $2.6 million in PPP loans, conducting numerous transactions with the money. This indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.”
If convicted, Boncimino faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine for bank fraud. He also faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for money laundering and a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for making false statements. Officials released him on bond, according to the press release.
In June, two other Georgia residents — in separate cases — allegedly committed massive CARES Act fraud.
Officials charged Curtis Porch, 48, and Dereen Porch, 43, with three counts of wire fraud and one count of theft of government property. If convicted, the two defendants face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for wire theft and a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for theft of government property.
Meanwhile, an Augusta woman admitted to submitting loan applications containing knowingly false representations in an effort to secure COVID-19 relief loans. Federal officials sentenced Jacinthia Williams, 44, of Augusta, to 12 months plus one day in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. This, after she pleaded guilty to wire fraud.
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Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].
