{"id":2646406,"date":"2026-08-18T09:12:01","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T13:12:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/massachusetts-mayor-charged-in-alleged-1-5-million-pandemic-era-loan-fraud-and-money-laundering-scheme\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T09:14:57","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T13:14:57","slug":"massachusetts-mayor-charged-in-alleged-1-5-million-pandemic-era-loan-fraud-and-money-laundering-scheme","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/massachusetts-mayor-charged-in-alleged-1-5-million-pandemic-era-loan-fraud-and-money-laundering-scheme\/","title":{"rendered":"Massachusetts Mayor Charged in Alleged $1.5 Million Pandemic-Era Loan Fraud And Money Laundering Scheme"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fmassachusetts-mayor-charged-in-alleged-1-5-million-pandemic-era-loan-fraud-and-money-laundering-scheme%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2646406&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article reports that Brian DePe\u00f1a, the Democratic mayor of Lawrence, Massachusetts, has been arrested on charges of fraud and money laundering. He is accused of illegally obtaining over $1.5 million in pandemic small-business relief loans, which he allegedly misused for personal expenses such as funding his campaign, paying taxes, and paying off mortgages. DePe\u00f1a faces federal charges and is scheduled to appear in court.The Department of Justice emphasizes that the funds were intended to support small businesses during the pandemic, not personal financial gains. The arrest highlights ongoing efforts by authorities to combat fraud in relief programs and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/boeberts-estranged-husband-posts-statement-after-theater-incident-i-was-unfaithful-to-lauren\/\" title=\"Boebert&#039;s Ex-Husband Admits Infidelity in Theater Incident.\">hold public officials accountable<\/a>.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><br \/>\n<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\"><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>The Democratic mayor of Lawrence, Mass. has been arrested and faces charges for allegedly fraudulently obtaining more than $1.5 million in <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >pandemic-era small-business loans<\/a> and misusing the money, the Department of Justice said Friday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__paragraph\">Brian DePe\u00f1a, 61, was charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering and is set to make an initial appearance in a Boston federal court on Friday, the DOJ said in a <a class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao-ma\/pr\/massachusetts-mayor-charged-pandemic-loan-fraud-and-money-laundering\">news release<\/a>. DePe\u00f1a used the funds from the pandemic relief loans to fund his campaign account, pay personal taxes, and pay off more than $880,000 in high-interest mortgages, the department alleges.<\/p>\n<p class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__paragraph\">\u201cMayor [DePe\u00f1a] was elected to be a leader for the City of Lawrence. He was looked up to and trusted by his constituents, but he betrayed that trust through his alleged corruption and lies,\u201d U.S. Attorney Leah Foley said in a statement. \u201cToday\u2019s arrest is just another example of our determination to root out fraud by anyone, even public officials and holding elected officials accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__paragraph\">In 2020 and 2021, DePe\u00f1a applied for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) for Tenares Tire Services Inc., a Lawrence-based tire sales and automotive services business that he owned, the DOJ alleged, citing charging documents. The EIDL program provided loans and advances aiming to \u201chelp businesses recover from the economic impacts of the pandemic,\u201d <a class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sba.gov\/loans\/covid-era-programs\/#covid-eidl\">according<\/a> to the U.S. Small Business Administration.<\/p>\n<p class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__paragraph\">Working capital did not include financing a political campaign, paying personal taxes, or paying off mortgages, according to the DOJ.<\/p>\n<p class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__paragraph\">DePe\u00f1a\u2019s office did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation\u2019s request for comment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__paragraph\">\u201cToday\u2019s arrest highlights [IRS Criminal Investigation\u2019s (CI)] continued commitment to safeguarding emergency relief programs and holding accountable those who abuse them,\u201d Special Agent in Charge of the IRS CI\u2019s Boston Field Office Thomas Demeo said in a statement. \u201cCARES Act funds were created to help small businesses survive an unprecedented national crisis \u2014 not to bankroll personal debts, political ambitions, or real estate ventures.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__paragraph\">\u201cIRS Criminal Investigation remains committed to protecting taxpayer dollars, pursuing those who exploit federal relief funds, and ensuring that financial integrity is upheld at every step,\u201d Demeo added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__paragraph\">When asked whether DePe\u00f1a intends to step down from his role while leaving the court on Friday, DePe\u00f1a\u2019s attorney replied: \u201cNo, he\u2019s done a great job in Lawrence,\u201d WCVB <a class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wcvb.com\/article\/lawrence-mayor-brian-de-pena-fbi-arrest\/73435071\">reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"LexicalEditorTheme__paragraph\">Friday\u2019s announcement comes after a slate of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rep-andy-biggs-calls-for-abolishing-the-department-of-education\/\" title=\"Rep. Andy Biggs Calls for Abolishing the ... of Education\">pandemic-era relief programs<\/a> have commonly been targeted by fraudsters, some experts previously told the Daily Caller.<\/p>\n<div class=\"disclaimer\">\n<p>All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter\u2019s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact <a href=\"http:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/mailto:licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org\">licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f7f7f7; color: #171717; display: flex;font-size: 16px;font-weight: 600;line-height: 1.5;margin: 24px 0;padding: 18px 20px 18px 30px;text-align: left;\">\n<div style=\"align-self: stretch;border-left: 3px solid #171717;flex-shrink: 0;padding-left: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<p><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/\">Choose The Western Journal as your preferred source on Google and never miss reporting that defends truth, protects freedom, and advances Western civilization<\/a><\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey == typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts = { \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs = [ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i = 0; i < inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]] = document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display = 'block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display = 'none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src = firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display = 'inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id'] = firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting = jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display = 'none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display = 'block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/body><\/html><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lawrence, Mass. Mayor Brian DePe\u00f1a, 61, faces charges for allegedly stealing over $1.5M in pandemic small-business loans and misusing funds, DOJ reports<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2646407,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/IMG_1415.jpeg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[69955,5610,4602,33963,84313],"class_list":["post-2646406","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-loan-fraud","tag-massachusetts","tag-mayor","tag-money-laundering","tag-pandemic-scam"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/IMG_1415.jpeg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646406","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2646406"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646406\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2646411,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646406\/revisions\/2646411"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2646407"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2646406"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2646406"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2646406"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}