Federal officials have sentenced a Stonecrest, Georgia man for defrauding the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Coronavirus Food Relief Program and attempting to defraud the IRS’s COVID-19 relief program.
This, according to a press release that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia published this week.
That man, Christopher Hayes, 35, who already pleaded guilty in May, received a sentence of two years and six months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. He must also pay restitution of $248,739, the press release said.
“Hayes submitted a false claim to the USDA’s Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) for the claimed loss of livestock at his commercial farming operation. CFAP provided direct relief to producers who faced price declines and additional marketing costs due to COVID-19. Hayes did not own or operate a commercial farming operation and did not have losses associated with any livestock when he made a claim under CFAP,” the press release said.
“In addition, Hayes submitted a fraudulent IRS Form 7200, which, when used legitimately, allows an employer to request an advance payment of employer credits under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). The FFCRA provides small and midsize employers refundable tax credits that reimburse them, dollar-for-dollar, for the cost of providing paid sick and family leave wages to their employees for leave related to COVID-19. In total, Hayes attempted to obtain over $1.5 million in COVID-19 relief funding.”
This is the first completed prosecution for fraud on these two COVID-19 relief programs in the country, the press release said.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced an expansion of the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) in March, according to the USDA’s website.
“This is part of a larger effort to reach a greater share of farming operations and improve USDA pandemic assistance,” the USDA’s website said.
– – –
Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].
