(The Center Square) – Two cases of federal pandemic loan fraud involving approximately $635,000 were announced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Missouri.
Two people from the St. Louis area were indicted and accused of fraudulently obtaining approximately $500,000 in pandemic business loans. In a separate case, a man from University City admitted fraudulently obtaining a $135,000 pandemic loan and defrauding Missouri’s Medicaid program.
Pamela Hubbard of St. Louis and Irwin Coats of Florissant were each indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. They pleaded not guilty in court on Tuesday.
In the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, Hubbard, 45, and Coats, 43, developed a scheme to fraudulently obtain Paycheck Protection Program loans, according to the indictment. The PPP program was intended to help struggling small businesses during the pandemic shutdowns.
The two planned to use the money to open a “Wing Strip” in Florissant, according to the indictment. In May 2020, Coats applied for a $53,125 loan in the name of Abounding Protection LLC, a company he set up in 2007. Coats falsely claimed the company had 12 employees and an average monthly payroll of $21,250. In March 2021, coats submitted an application and received another loan for $24,166. The indictment stated Coats’ company had no employees, wages, company operations or revenue.
In June 2020, Hubbard submitted a PPP loan application for Star Shyne LLC,...
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