Jacksonville attorney is headed to federal prison in $300,000 COVID-19 relief scam

Scott Butler, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union
·2 min read

A four-day trial in U.S. District Court resulted in the conviction of a Jacksonville attorney for participating in a scheme to illegally obtain about $300,000 from a federal COVID-19 small business relief program.

Shaquandra Arita Woods, 40, is guilty of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and faces up to 20 years in prison, along with substantial financial penalties and restitution, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of Georgia.

Woods, who practiced law in Florida and Georgia, completed at least nine applications for Economic Injury Disaster Loans funding for herself and others, fabricating and submitting false documents to support the requests, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. She attempted to secure nearly $800,000 in COVID-19 funding for herself and others in the scheme and was successful in obtaining a little more than $300,000 for herself.

“Congress provided more than $6 billion in funding for the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act as a lifeline in the midst of a generational catastrophe for struggling small businesses,” U.S. Attorney Jill Steinberg said. “This year alone, our office has prosecuted defendants responsible for more than $11 million in CARES Act fraud, and with our law enforcement partners we continue to identify and hold accountable those who illegally enrich themselves through these programs.”

Under the CARES Act, the Small Business Administration provided Economic Injury Disaster Loans to eligible small businesses experiencing substantial financial interruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Fraud in and against the CARES Act amounts to theft from American taxpayers,” said Keri Farley, special agent in charge of FBI Atlanta.

U.S. District Court Judge R. Stan Baker will schedule sentencing for Woods after a pre-sentence investigation by U.S. Probation Services.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at (866) 720-5721 or online at justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville attorney is convicted in COVID-19 relief scheme