GRAND RAPIDS (AP) — A Michigan man has been sentenced to more than seven years in prison for his role in fraudulently obtaining more than in $1.4 million in federal COVID-19 relief money.
A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the sentence against 47-year-old Jemar Mason of Grand Rapids, who pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Mason was among four people, including a former Georgia police officer, in a group that prepared fraudulent applications for federal Paycheck Protection Program loans in 2020 for companies that did not have legitimate customers or employees, according to prosecutors.
Western Michigan U.S. Attorney Mark Totten said in a statement that Mason saw the COVID-19 pandemic "as an opportunity to get rich quick" with money intended to keep people from losing their jobs.
The four other people indicted with Mason in the scheme have been convicted on federal charges. That includes former Clayton County, Georgia, police officer Andre Jackson, who is scheduled to be sentenced in February.
- Posted December 23, 2022
- Tweet This | Share on Facebook
Seven-year sentence ordered in $1.4M COVID-19 relief fraud
headlines Oakland County
- Presidents recognized
- Supreme Court justices tell Congress their safety is at risk and more must be spent on security
- As cyclospora illnesses surge to a record, Michigan officials eye lettuce as a possible cause
- ACLU leader and social justice advocate to receive ABA Thurgood Marshall Award
- Health and Housing Summer Fest hosted in Royal Oak
headlines National
- ABA connects death row inmate to pro bono attorneys who help free him
- ACLU and BigLaw firm use ‘Orange is the New Black’ in hashtag effort to promote NY jail reform
- 2 judges suspended in separate cases after being indicted on criminal charges
- Convicted ex-judge gets $5K fine but no prison time in immigration case
- Ohio governor signs bill prohibiting foreign litigation funding
- Many small firms collect payments faster than BigLaw counterparts, new data shows
