Andrew S. Boutros, Attorney | U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois
Andrew S. Boutros, Attorney | U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois
A federal grand jury in Chicago has indicted four individuals for allegedly obtaining millions of dollars in fraudulent small business loans through relief programs established under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
According to an indictment unsealed this week in the Northern District of Illinois, Dexter M. Crawford, Jr., Timika Royston, Orlando Patrick, and Jeremie Miller are accused of participating in schemes involving the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program (EIDL). The indictment states that from 2020 to 2022, the defendants submitted numerous fraudulent applications for themselves and businesses they purportedly owned. These applications reportedly included false statements about employee numbers, payrolls, revenues, and other expenses.
The charges specify that Crawford, 41, of Woodridge, Illinois, faces seven counts of wire fraud and three counts of money laundering. Royston, 49, of Chicago, is charged with three counts of wire fraud; Patrick, 54, also of Chicago, faces two counts of wire fraud; and Miller, 42, of Plainfield, Illinois is charged with one count each of wire fraud and money laundering. Each count of wire fraud carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison; each money laundering count carries up to ten years.
Royston and Miller have pleaded not guilty. Arraignment for Patrick is scheduled for August 28, 2025. Crawford’s arraignment date has not yet been set.
Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, announced the indictment along with Ramsey E. Covington, Special Agent-in-Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in Chicago. The SBA Office of Inspector General provided assistance in the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Snell represents the government.
“The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Anyone with information about attempted Covid-19 relief fraud is encouraged to contact authorities by calling the National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or filing an online complaint at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
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