Kansas City Man Pleads Guilty to COVID Fraud

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City man pled guilty today to wire fraud in a scheme to fraudulently obtain a $312,500 Paycheck Protection Plan (PPP) loan, guaranteed by the United States Small Business Administration under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).

Jarrell Curne, 36, was the owner of a Missouri limited liability company called Hustle Ova Everything Entertainment (Hustle).  On May 13, 2020, Curne submitted a $312,500 PPP loan application to U.S. Bank on behalf of Hustle. In the loan application, Curne falsely stated that, in 2019, Hustle had an annual payroll of $1.5 million and 100 employees.  In reality, Hustle had no eligible employees or payroll whatsoever.

Based on the fraudulent representations Curne made in the Hustle PPP loan application, on May 15, 2020, U.S. Bank transferred $312,500 to a bank account controlled by Curne in the name of Hustle.  In furtherance of his wire-fraud scheme and in an effort for the Small Business Administration to forgive the Hustle PPP loan, Curne falsely certified that the loan proceeds were used for permissible business purposes under the PPP.  In reality, the funds were used by Curne for personal expenses.

Under federal statutes, Curne is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. The sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on a set of advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul S. Becker and James Kirkpatrick. It was investigated by Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation.