Lewiston Man Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Obtaining PPP Loan During Pandemic

BANGOR, Maine: A Lewiston man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Bangor to filing a fraudulent application for a loan from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

According to court records, in April 2021, Shahied Golden, 29, filed a fraudulent PPP loan application and received approximately $20,833 in PPP funds. The application listed a false gross income for 2020 and falsely stated the loan proceeds were needed to make payroll payments for his alleged business. He also submitted a fraudulent document in support of his application, which falsely stated his gross income, among other things. Further, Golden caused the funds to be deposited into his own personal bank account, quickly withdrew the funds, and did not use the PPP proceeds for approved expenses. 

Golden faces up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigative report by the U.S. Probation Office. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.

Paycheck Protection Program (PPP): The PPP was a COVID-19 pandemic relief program administered by the Small Business Administration (SBA) that provided forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses. The PPP permitted participating third-party lenders to approve and disburse SBA-backed PPP loans to cover payroll, fixed debts, utilities, rent/mortgage, accounts payable and other bills incurred by qualifying businesses during, and resulting from, the COVID-19 pandemic. PPP loans were fully guaranteed by the SBA.

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