The Florida couple plead guilty to $ 881K COVID-19 aid fraud

FORT MYERS, Florida – A Florida couple has pleaded guilty to stealing nearly $ 900,000 in COVID-19 aids.

Amber Bruey, 35, of Lehigh Acres, pleaded guilty Wednesday in Fort Myers federal court for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and illegal monetary transactions, according to court records. Her husband, Anthony Bruey, pleaded guilty to the same charges last month. A date for sentencing was not immediately set for the couple.

According to court documents, Brueys conspired to submit a total of 26 fraudulent applications for the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loan to the Small Business Administration, as well as approved lenders and loan processors, between April 2020 and June 2020. , wages, gross income, the total number of employees and the criminal history of applicants or business owners.

Lenders and the SBA approved 12 of the loans, allowing Brueys to raise $ 881,058.35 in PPP and EIDL funds. The couple used the money to buy a home for $ 211,457 in North Carolina, two cars and to pay compensation of $ 23,566 in a previous criminal case for Amber Bruey.

The Paycheck Protection Program represents billions of dollars in forgivable small business loans to Americans struggling because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a part of coronavirus emergency package that became federal law in 2020.

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