A Massachusetts man was arrested and charged for allegedly obtaining a fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan for his pizza restaurant before selling the restaurant and using the loan to buy a farm and alpacas.
According to the Justice Department Dana McIntyre, 57 inflated “information about the pizzeria’s employees and payroll expenses and falsified an official tax form in an effort to qualify the business for a larger loan amount.”
He claimed the pizza shop had almost 50 employees, when records indicate it had fewer than 10.
After receiving the loan of over $660,000, McIntyre sold the business and used all the money for personal expenses including, buying a farm in Vermont, two vehicles–including a 1950 Hudson– and several alpacas. He also purchased airtime to host a weekly radio show focused on cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, the Justice Department said.
McIntyre has been charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering.
If convicted of both charges, he faces up to 40 years in prison and $750,000 in fines.
