PENSACOLA, Fla. – A Navarre man who was working a full-time civilian job and serving part time in the Air Force Reserve has admitted using a nonexistent self-employment claim to obtain more than $20,000 from a federal COVID-19 relief program.
Ray Anthony Pearson II, 32, pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of wire fraud involving a Paycheck Protection Program loan, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida announced Sept. 29.
The application dates back to 2021, when billions of dollars in PPP loans were being distributed to help businesses weather the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to court documents, Pearson caused an online application to be submitted claiming he was self-employed and operated a business that had lost income because of the pandemic.
Federal prosecutors said that wasn’t true.
At the time, Pearson was working full time in a civilian position while also serving as an Air Force reservist. The application resulted in Pearson receiving $20,142 in PPP funds that prosecutors said he was not entitled to receive.
Pearson tried a second time, according to court records, submitting another PPP loan application. That one was denied.
His case was investigated by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.
Pearson now faces up to 20 years in federal prison. Under his plea agreement, he has agreed to pay restitution and forfeit assets subject to forfeiture.
U.S. District Judge T. Kent Wetherell II is scheduled to sentence Pearson at 2 p.m. Dec. 17 at the federal courthouse in Pensacola.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica Etherton and Walter Narramore are prosecuting the case.
The Justice Department included Pearson’s prosecution among cases connected to its National Fraud Enforcement Division and the Trump administration’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud. DOJ formally announced the division April 7 and says its mission includes investigating fraud involving taxpayer-funded programs.