Georgian to pay more than $1.3 million, serve prison time for COVID-19 relief fraud

While the CARES Act was meant to help those financially burdened by the COVID-19 pandemic, reports of people fraudulently obtaining and misusing the funds are continuing to be seen.

Kyle Waldron, 59, of Douglas, was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison and ordered to pay more than $1.3 million in restitution after pleading guilty to money laundering, according to a release from the U.S Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.

The CARES Act disbursed funds through grants and forgivable loans through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL). An investigation by the IRS and the U.S. Secret Service determined Waldron submitted at least 20 different PPP or EIDL applications on behalf of multiple individuals and businesses. He submitted multiple fake IRS forms in support of the funding applications, falsely claimed large numbers of non-existent employees, and inflated revenues in fraudulent requests for funding.

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During the investigation, more than $300,000 was seized from Waldron’s bank accounts, which is subject to forfeiture. He has been ordered to serve three years of supervised release upon completion of his imprisonment. No parole was granted.

Demetrius Hardeman, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation at the Atlanta Field Office, said Waldron's sentence along with the restitution serves as a notice to those who committed COVID-19 fraud that the IRS and its partners are still conducting investigations and holding them accountable.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at (866) 720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Georgia COVID-19 fraudster sentenced to prison, ordered to pay $1.3M