{"id":559122,"date":"2021-06-10T10:37:12","date_gmt":"2021-06-10T14:37:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=559122"},"modified":"2021-06-10T10:37:17","modified_gmt":"2021-06-10T14:37:17","slug":"lamborghinis-rappers-and-the-new-york-jets-the-4-craziest-examples-of-covid-stimulus-fraud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/lamborghinis-rappers-and-the-new-york-jets-the-4-craziest-examples-of-covid-stimulus-fraud\/","title":{"rendered":"Lamborghinis, Rappers, And The New York Jets: The 4 Craziest Examples Of COVID Stimulus Fraud"},"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\">30<\/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%2Flamborghinis-rappers-and-the-new-york-jets-the-4-craziest-examples-of-covid-stimulus-fraud%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=559122&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--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-464619009.jpg?w=1200&#038;h=800&#038;ixlib=react-9.0.3\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\"  style=\"display:none\"><\/div>\n<p><span>Bernie Madoff once said that \u201cthe whole government is a Ponzi scheme.\u201d As the government passed trillions in COVID-19 stimulus spending over the past year, many Americans Ponzied the government right back.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The <\/span><i><span>CARES Act <\/span><\/i><span>and the <\/span><i><span>American Rescue Plan <\/span><\/i><span>each <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/comparing-trump-and-bidens-covid-relief-bills\"><span>poured<\/span><\/a><span> countless billions of taxpayer dollars into federal unemployment benefits, stimulus checks, and small business loans. Indeed, a Department of Labor probe discovered that state and federal officials\u2019 lack of communication and failure to cross-reference databases caused at least 10% of unemployment aid to be improperly distributed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Embracing the imperishable American spirit of ingenuity and entrepreneurship, some fraudsters were particularly creative and audacious in their schemes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Here are four examples.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>\u201cRap Fraud\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>A rapper dropped a music video about getting rich from unemployment fraud.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>A Department of Justice <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao-cdca\/pr\/rapper-who-bragged-about-unemployment-benefits-scam-music-video-arrested-allegedly\"><span>press release<\/span><\/a><span> announced that Fontrell Antonio Baines \u2014 also known as \u201cNuke Bizzle\u201d \u2014 used \u201cdebit cards pre-loaded with unemployment benefits administered by the California Employment Development Department.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cNuke Bizzle\u201d managed to finesse $1.2 million in fraudulently obtained benefits through 92 debit cards. Over $700,000 of the benefits were obtained through cash withdrawals and \u201cpurchases of merchandise and services.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Before his scheme was uncovered by law enforcement, Nuke \u201cbragged about his ability to defraud the EDD in a music video posted on YouTube and in postings to his Instagram account.\u201d In a music video entitled \u201cEDD,\u201d he proclaimed that he would \u201cgo to the bank with a stack of these\u201d as he held up envelopes from the agency. Another rapper in the video said that \u201cyou gotta sell cocaine, I just file a claim.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Facing up to 22 years in prison for device fraud, aggregated identity theft, and interstate transportation of stolen property, Mr. Bizzle\u2019s days in the unemployment fraud racket \u2014 and the rap game \u2014 appear to be over.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Miami Lamborghini<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>A \u201cFlorida Man\u201d \u2014 yes, really \u2014 managed to use a small business loan to buy a Lamborghini.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The Justice Department <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/opa\/pr\/florida-man-who-used-covid-relief-funds-purchase-lamborghini-sports-car-charged-miami-federal\"><span>states<\/span><\/a><span> that Miami resident David Hines \u201csought approximately $13.5 million in PPP loans through applications to an insured financial institution on behalf of different companies.\u201d Once he secured $3.9 million in loans, Hines \u201cpurchased a 2020 Lamborghini Huracan sports car for approximately $318,000.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Federal investigators caught wind of his scheme once he failed to \u201cmake the payroll payments that he claimed on his loan applications.\u201d Nevertheless, Hines made purchases \u201cat luxury retailers and resorts in Miami Beach.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Slapped with one count of bank fraud, one count of making false statements to a financial institution, and one count of engaging in transactions in unlawful proceeds, Hines may no longer get to put the top down and feel the warm South Florida air.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>One Big Fumble<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Federal officials charged an NFL player with fraudulently seeking small business loans.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Josh Bellamy \u2014 who <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/opa\/pr\/nfl-player-charged-role-24-million-covid-relief-fraud-scheme\"><span>played<\/span><\/a><span> for the New York Jets as a wide receiver \u2014 was charged \u201c for his alleged participation in a scheme to file fraudulent loan applications seeking more than $24 million\u201d in Paycheck Protection Program loans.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Charged with wire fraud and bank fraud, Bellamy allegedly obtained \u201ca PPP loan of $1,246,565 for his own company,\u201d purchased \u201cover $104,000 in luxury goods\u201d from Dior and Gucci, and spent \u201capproximately $62,774 in PPP loan proceeds at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.\u201d He also sought loans on behalf of family members and other associates.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Fake suicide<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>A businessman in Massachusetts faked his own death to avoid sentencing on charges of stimulus fraud.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>David Staveley \u2014 also known as Kurt David Sanborn and David Sanborn \u2014 <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao-ri\/pr\/guilty-plea-first-nation-cares-act-fraud-case\"><span>admitted<\/span><\/a><span> that he and a partner filed \u201cfraudulent PPP loan applications with a Rhode Island bank, falsely claiming they owned businesses with large monthly payrolls when, in fact, they did not own the businesses.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Two of the businesses of which they claimed ownership \u2014 restaurants Remington House Inn and On The Trax \u2014 were closed at the time of the loan submissions. Another business \u2014 Dock Wireless \u2014 had not yet been incorporated.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The pair were \u201cthe first individuals in the nation charged with defrauding the CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program.\u201d Three weeks after officials sent Staveley into home detention with electronic monitoring, he \u201cremoved his electronic monitoring device and fled.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>He then \u201cstaged his suicide by, among other things, leaving suicide notes with associates and in his car, which was located by the ocean in Massachusetts, unlocked and with his wallet inside.\u201d Staveley then managed to travel through various states with several more false identities and stolen license plates.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><i>The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author\u2019s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><i>The Daily Wire is one of America\u2019s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a\u00a0<\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/subscribe\"><span class=\"s1\"><i>member<\/i><\/span><\/a><i>.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bernie Madoff once said that \u201cthe whole government is a Ponzi scheme.\u201d As the government passed trillions in COVID-19 stimulus spending over the past year, many Americans Ponzied the government &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2279859,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-464619009.jpg?w=1200&h=800&ixlib=react-9.0.3","fifu_image_alt":"Lamborghinis, Rappers, And The New York Jets: The 4 Craziest Examples Of COVID Stimulus Fraud","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-559122","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-464619009.jpg?w=1200&h=800&ixlib=react-9.0.3","fifu_image_alt":"Lamborghinis, Rappers, And The New York Jets: The 4 Craziest Examples Of COVID Stimulus Fraud","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/559122","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=559122"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/559122\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2279859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=559122"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=559122"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=559122"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}