Six individuals were indicted for their alleged involvement in a fraudulent scheme that procured more than $240,000 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
The defendants are:
- Renetta Golden-Larimore, 54, Kansas City, Mo.
- Tajona Manning, 31, Kansas City, Mo.
- Tashawn Mayfield, 24, Kansas City, Mo.
- Camonte Henderson, 25, Raytown, Mo.
- Quinniece Smith, 33, Dallas, Texas
- Dannisha Taylor, 32, New Orleans, Louisiana
They were charged in a seven-count indictment returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., on Wednesday, Oct. 18. The indictment was unsealed and made public today.
According to the federal indictment, from March 2021 to January 2022, the defendants conspired to submit false applications for PPP loans. This misconduct led to the issuance of over $240,000 in fraudulent loans to ineligible borrowers, with some loans even forgiven despite the funds not being used as dictated by the PPP guidelines.
The indictment details that Golden-Larimore allegedly prepared and filed fraudulent loan applications for the co-conspirators, receiving payments between $2,000 and $7,000 from the fraudulent proceeds. She is accused of creating counterfeit IRS forms and inflating incomes to make borrowers appear eligible.
Each of the other defendants—Manning, Mayfield, Henderson, Smith, and Taylor—allegedly received a PPP loan of $20,832.
Further charges in the indictment include one count of wire fraud for Manning, Mayfield, Henderson, and Taylor. Smith faces two counts of wire fraud.
The indictment also seeks forfeiture of at least $75,833 from Golden-Larimore and $20,832 from each of the other defendants, amounts alleged to be the proceeds from the conspiracy.
In a related development, Golden-Larimore faces charges in a separate federal indictment as of April 26, 2023, for a similar scheme involving nearly $250,000 in fraudulent PPP loans issued to residents in the Kansas City metropolitan area.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul S. Becker is prosecuting the case, following investigations by IRS-Criminal Investigation and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.
