Former USAID Employee Sentenced to Six Months in Federal Prison for CARES Act Fraud Scheme That Netted Over $176,000
A former U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) employee received a federal-prison term for a Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act scheme that enabled him to illegally obtain more than $176,000 in COVID-19 pandemic relief funds, the U.S. Department of Justice announced on November 9.
U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang sentenced Simeon Bakare, 56, of Waldorf, Maryland, to six months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, including two months of home detention, for a wire-fraud charge in connection with the scheme. Judge Chuang also ordered Bakare to forfeit $176,000 and to pay $176,000 in restitution.
Bakare pled guilty to wire fraud on June 3, 2026. According to the guilty plea, beginning in April 2020 and continuing until November 2021, Bakare knowingly engaged in a scheme to defraud the U.S. Small Business Administration. Bakare previously worked on information technology matters for USAID.
Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the sentence with Acting Special Agent in Charge Eduardo Santos of the USAID Office of Inspector General. The prosecution is part of the Trump Administration's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, the Justice Department said.
(Source: U.S. Department of Justice)
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：美国司法部总部大楼。联邦核心机构固定图库。 / Photo: Headquarters building of the U.S. Department of Justice. Federal core fixed photo library.
