Virginia Couple Charged in $1.5 Million Virus Fraud Scheme
And we would have got away with it too, if it hadn't been for you kids.
Virginia Couple Charged in $1.5 Million Virus Fraud Scheme
Published June 24, 2020 Updated on June 24, 2020 at 7:58 pm
A Northern Virginia couple has been charged with fraud after prosecutors say they received nearly $1.5 million in federal funds meant for businesses struggling under the coronavirus pandemic.
Federal prosecutors in Alexandria say 43-year-old Monica Magdalena Jaworska of Ashburn and her husband, 42-year-old Tarik Jaafar of Woodbridge, were arrested Saturday at Kennedy International Airport in New York after buying one-way tickets to Poland.
Prosecutors say the pair filed 18 different loan applications under the federal Paycheck Protection Program. Four loans totaling more than $1.4 million were approved.
According to an affidavit filed by an investigator with the Small Business Administration, they used fraudulent IRS forms to indicate they were supporting dozens of employees. But an investigation revealed strong evidence the businesses didn't really exist.
Prosecutors say the couple bought the plane tickets after officers sought to interview them.
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