Man splurged on Range Rover with stolen COVID relief funds, feds say. He’s prison-bound
A Georgia businessman treated himself to a pair of luxury SUVs after scamming $160,000 from the Paycheck Protection Program, federal prosecutors say.
Now he’s headed to prison.
Brandon Ridge, 37, of Decatur was ordered to serve two years in prison followed by three years of supervised release after authorities say he submitted “materially false information” to obtain thousands of dollars in federal funds aimed at helping businesses hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia announced Dec. 8.
Ridge pleaded guilty to bank fraud in August, court documents show, and agreed to forfeit a 2016 Range Rover he bought with the stolen funds. More than $100,000 will also be seized from his bank accounts.
“Ridge thought he could unjustly enrich himself by defrauding a program designed to support struggling businesses during an international pandemic,” U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine said in a statement. “His sentence should serve as a warning to others that there are serious consequences for engaging in this type of fraud.”
Congress previously authorized $349 billion in forgivable loans under the CARES Act — signed into law on March 2020 — to help businesses with rent, utilities and payroll costs. Between April and June 2020, prosecutors allege Ridge submitted at least two fake PPP loan applications seeking nearly $450,000 for his business, “Barking Rose Solutions.”
Court documents show he fabricated bank statements, claiming his company had a starting balance of $29,181.56. He further exaggerated the business’s deposits and expenditures “to make it appear that the company qualified for PPP relief,” according to prosecutors.
“In actuality, in February 2020, Barking Rose Solutions had a starting balance of $21.56, incoming deposits of $3,803.12, expenditures of $3,711.81 and an ending balance of $112.87,” the indictment reads.
One of Ridge’s applications was accepted and he received a PPP loan for $162,467.50, court documents show. Rather than use the funds as intended, prosecutors said he transferred some of proceeds into his personal bank account and splurged on two new cars, including a Mazda CX-5.
“Ridge’s personal greed affects every tax paying citizen in this country and takes away from government funds intended to provide relief to small business and employees who desperately need it during this pandemic,” said Chris Hacker, special agent in charge of FBI Atlanta, who aided in the investigation.
In March 2021, the Justice Department announced “an historic enforcement initiative to detect and disrupt COVID-19 related fraud schemes,” bringing charges against more than 470 defendants.
This story was originally published December 9, 2021 at 7:04 AM with the headline "Man splurged on Range Rover with stolen COVID relief funds, feds say. He’s prison-bound."