WEST NYACK, NY — A Hudson Valley man is among 19 New York State and New York City workers accused of attempting to scam the government of more than $1.5 million in total.
Edwin Skepple of West Nyack was named in the complaint unsealed on Wednesday. The 40-year-old is charged with wire fraud for submitting fraudulent loans under the SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (“EIDL”) program and/or Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”), according to federal prosecutors. If convicted, the federal charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
Eighteen other state and city employees were also charged in the coordinated fraud, according to the complaint unsealed today.
Damian Williams, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Thomas M. Fattorusso, Special Agent in Charge of the NY Field Office of the IRS, Criminal Investigation and Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite, Eastern Region Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Inspector General, announced the unsealing of the complaint charging Rodney Smith, Denise Gant, Ebony Simon, Phya Scott, Priscilla Jackson, Sharon Charles, Yolanda Lawrence, Yolanda Ratcliff and Zhane Ratcliff with conspiring to commit wire fraud by submitting fraudulent SBA loan applications, as well as complaints charging Brandon Boyle, Delilah Cummings, Vashawn Foreman, Trevor Gordon, Dione Hall, Toni McCullough, Jarod Ottley, Ronette Short, Skepple and Walter Susswell individually with wire fraud for…
