Georgia Man Sentenced to 2 Years 9 Months for $1.25 Million Pandemic Relief and Auto Loan Fraud
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia announced on November 5, 2026, that Hugh A. Brown, Jr., 35, of Fayetteville, Georgia, was sentenced that day to two years and nine months in federal prison for fraudulently obtaining roughly $1.25 million in pandemic relief and auto loans.
U.S. District Judge Victoria M. Calvert imposed the sentence, which includes five years of supervised release after prison and restitution of $1,244,243.81 to the Small Business Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, and financial institutions. Brown pleaded guilty on June 3, 2026, to bank fraud conspiracy and bank fraud.
According to information presented in court, Brown's schemes ran for more than five years in three parts. In 2020, he applied for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan by submitting false payroll information and fake IRS tax forms to a federally insured bank, receiving a $162,500 PPP loan. In 2022, he fraudulently claimed Employee Retention Credits (ERCs) on behalf of his company and, after filing fraudulent tax returns, received seven United States Treasury checks totaling $644,452.98 in ERCs and other credits.
In addition, from at least February 2022 through February 2025, Brown obtained fraudulent bank and credit union loans worth nearly $450,000 by submitting fake documents, misrepresenting employment and income information, and providing fictitious vehicle details as loan collateral.
"This defendant shamelessly fleeced federal taxpayers and financial institutions over half a decade through various loan fraud schemes," said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. "My office will continue to prosecute and seek prison time for anyone who abuses government relief programs."
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Internal Revenue Service, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, with valuable assistance from Homeland Security Investigations.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
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