A Michigan woman was sentenced yesterday for her role in a multi-million-dollar Paycheck Protection Program fraud scheme.
Rita Shaba, 40, was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison after having pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud and bank fraud.
According to court records, Shaba and her co-conspirators caused fraudulent PPP applications to be submitted for several business entities. Those applications misrepresented payroll information for the business entities and falsely certified that PPP loan funds would be used for permissible business-related purposes. The defendants also caused fictitious payroll, health insurance, bank, and tax records to be submitted in connection with the PPP loan applications.
The defendants received over $3 million in fraudulent PPP loan funds. To date, law enforcement has seized and recovered over $2.1 million of those funds.
The Paycheck Protection Program was created by Congress to provide assistance to businesses harmed by the economic dislocations caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Shaba was sentenced by Judge Jonathan J.C. Grey. Her co-defendants, Samer Kammo and Christina Anasi, still await sentencing.
As part of her sentence, Shaba was also ordered to pay $3,294,798.50 in restitution.
According to court records, when Shaba learned of the government’s investigation, she messaged a co-conspirator and stated that she thought she was ““going on a long vacation” and “leaving for a few years.”
“Rita Shaba told countless lies in this case. But this is true: when you get caught committing major fraud in our district, we will aggressively prosecute you and seek substantial prison time,” stated U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. Gorgon.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations. The Unemployment Insurance Agency, Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity has also provided valuable assistance.
"When federal relief programs are fraudulently abused, accountability must follow,” said Jennifer Runyan, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Detroit Field Office. “Rita Shaba diverted pandemic relief funds intended to support workers and small businesses, exploiting a national emergency for personal gain. The sentence imposed demonstrates that fraudulent abuse will not be tolerated. This result would not be possible without the hardworking investigative efforts of our team from the FBI Macomb County Resident Agency, HSI, and our partners at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan whose diligence ensured this scheme was uncovered and brought to justice.”
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew J. Yahkind. Related forfeiture and restitution matters are being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Jessica Nathan.
“Homeland Security Investigations is committed to protecting the integrity of federal relief programs and holding accountable those who exploit them for personal gain,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Jared Murphey of HSI Detroit. “This sentence demonstrates that individuals who defraud programs intended to help businesses and workers in times of crisis will face serious consequences.”
Joining in the announcement were Special Agent in Charge Jennifer Runyan, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Acting Special Agent in Charge Jared Murphey, Homeland Security Investigations Detroit.
