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Louisiana Woman Sentenced to Prison for Defrauding COVID-19 Relief Program

Published December 22, 2021

United States Attorney Ronald C. Gathe, Jr. announced that Chief U.S. Judge Shelly D. Dick sentenced April R. Falgoust, age 46, of Prairieville, Louisiana, to 18 months in federal prison following her conviction for wire fraud. The Court also sentenced Falgoust to serve three years of supervised release following her term of imprisonment, ordered her to pay $147,925.69 in restitution to the United States Small Business Administration, and further ordered her to forfeit an additional $143,800 in proceeds from her crime.

Today’s sentence stems from a series of ongoing investigations into fraud schemes targeting COVID-19 relief funds made available under the CARES Act, including fraud schemes targeting Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) funds, Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds, and other benefits intended to help people and businesses suffering from the economic effects of the pandemic.

In this instance, Falgoust designed a strategy to cheat the US Small Business Administration by making several fake and fraudulent applications for EIDL monies, as she admitted in her guilty plea. Falgoust filed five false applications in the names of the following entities between March 31, 2020, and May 8, 2020: “LA Fitness & Tan, LLC,” “FalgouStrong Fitness, LLC,” “Boss Lady Suits,” “Forever the Baddest Makeup,” and “Hemphire Seed & Nutrients.” She falsified the companies’ gross revenues, costs, number of employees, and the extent to which the pandemic had damaged the companies, among other things, in the applications. The SBA disbursed roughly $143,800 to the defendant based on the defendant’s fraudulent assertions, and the intended loss, including potential loss from fraudulent applications that the defendant submitted but that the SBA did not finance, was approximately $473,000.

U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Gathe, Jr., who is also the National Center for Disaster Fraud’s Executive Director, stated, “Preventing and prosecuting fraud is a priority of the Department of Justice, and this sentence should serve as a warning to those who would commit such crimes that we will bring offenders to justice and punish those who break the law. I applaud the efforts of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners in the prosecution and conviction of this defendant.”

“Today’s sentencing should serve as a reminder to those who deceive and steal from hardworking Americans that they will be held to account for their actions. The FBI and its partners will continue to hold accountable those like Ms. April Falgoust who perpetrate fraud schemes at the expense of the American people,” said FBI New Orleans Special Agent in Charge Douglas A. Williams, Jr. “We thank our partners at United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Louisiana, Internal Revenue Service and the Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General for their strong partnership and unrelenting pursuit of justice.”

“The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) will aggressively pursue those who use Internal Revenue Service (IRS) systems to facilitate their schemes to defraud pandemic relief programs,” said J. Russell George, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. “Fraudulent schemes such as this undermine the integrity of IRS programs and operations. We would like to thank the FBI, the SBA Office of the Inspector General, and the US Attorney’s Office for their continued partnership in combating pandemic fraud.”

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), and the United States Small Business Administration—Office of Inspector General (SBA-OIG), and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Alan Stevens, who serves as Senior Litigation Counsel for the United States Attorney’s Office.

Members of the public are urged to exercise great caution before disclosing personal identifying or financial information to anyone, particularly those who may contact you following a natural disaster. They’re also asked to report any suspected waste, fraud, abuse, or criminal allegations. If members of the public suspect they have been defrauded by a person or organization requesting relief donations on behalf of disaster victims, they should call the National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 1(866) 720-5721, email [email protected], or fax (225) 334-4707. Live operators are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week on the phone line.

To learn more about the NCDF please visit the website at www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud and watch a public service announcement.