Cape Coral man, 44, sentenced to 2 years in federal prison for COVID fraud
A Cape Coral man will spend two years in federal prison, convicted of nearly $300,000 fraud that stemmed from the COVID-19 pandemic.
U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber sentenced Denis Casseus, 44, for bank fraud and an illegal monetary transaction. As part of his sentence, the court also entered an order of forfeiture in the amount of $298,875, the proceeds of the bank fraud. Casseus had pleaded guilty on May 23.
According to court documents, between Feb. 22 and March 4, 2021, Casseus submitted two fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program applications to a financial institution federally insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation with branches in Lee County.
In each application, Casseus falsely represented that the funds would be used only for business-related purposes.
Authorities said Casseus falsely represented and certified that the funds acquired from the requested loans would be used to retain workers and maintain payroll or make mortgage payments, lease payments and utility payments on behalf of his purported businesses.
In total, authorities say, Casseus' false and fraudulent representations caused the financial institution to approve the loans.
On March 4, 2021, Casseus made a wire payment of $110,000 to a title company for the purchase of a residence in Cape Coral. Authorities said that money was an illegal monetary transaction, as Casseus used more than $10,000 in the loan funds toward the residence.
In March of 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act was enacted as a federal law, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who were suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses, through a program referred to as the Paycheck Protection Program.
In May 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force.
Casseus' case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service.
Casey Crowther remains in prison
In June, the appeals court upheld the convictions of Fort Myers roofer Casey David Crowther, 37, in a COVID relief fraud case.
Court records indicate a petition for a panel rehearing in Crowther's case was later denied July 28.
Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Threads @tomasfrobeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran, Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews and Twitter @TomasFRoBeltran.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: COVID fraud: Cape Coral man sentenced to 2 years in federal prison
