BATON ROUGE — The Middle District of Louisiana announced several charges and guilty pleas on Tuesday as part of a nationwide crackdown targeting fraud on the Small Business Administration's Paycheck Protection Program.

The PPP is a loan program launched by the SBA during COVID-19 to help businesses pay their employees, mortgages, rent and utilities. Applications for new loans closed in May 2021.

This year, from June 12 to Sept. 1, federal prosecutors from across the country, led by the Justice Department's National Fraud Enforcement Division, the SBA and the SBA Office of Inspector General, facilitated enforcement actions spanning over 160 criminals, including 80 newly charged defendants, totaling $245 million in intended loss to taxpayers.

“Millions of taxpayer dollars have been wrongfully obtained through fraudulent PPP loans. Our office is committed to finding those who have scammed the system, and we will prosecute them to the fullest extent possible,” U.S. Attorney Kurt Wall said in a prepared statement. 

In the Middle District of Louisiana, 17 defendants have been prosecuted as part of this takedown.

Charges announced:
Jovan Renee Darbonne, 47, of Baton Rouge, charged with making false statements to a financial institution on Aug. 31; she pleaded guilty. According to the charging document, Darbonne allegedly submitted fictitious 2020 IRS Form 941s on behalf of LA Educational Fund, LLC to a bank in support of a Paycheck Protection Program loan application, despite knowing the forms were fraudulent and had never been filed with the IRS.

Brelle Ford, 34, and Rydell Banks, Jr., 28, of Geismar, were indicted on conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and making a false statement to a bank charges on Aug. 26. According to the indictment, Ford and Banks allegedly conspired to submit false applications and supporting documents for pandemic and Hurricane Ida relief, including fraudulent PPP and EIDL applications in the names of multiple businesses, fictitious leases and receipts, and FEMA claims falsely asserting property damage. The indictment further alleges that the defendants used interstate wires to obtain FEMA deposits and made false statements to federally insured financial institutions in connection with second-draw PPP loan applications. Ford is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, two counts of wire fraud, and making a false statement to a bank, while Banks is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of wire fraud, and making a false statement to a bank.

Michelle W. Jackson, 52, and Ryachanelle L. Morris, 29, of Denham Springs and Vacherie, were indicted on wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges on Aug. 12. According to the indictment, Jackson and Morris purportedly conspired with others to submit false PPP, EIDL, and unemployment applications using fabricated tax records, falsified payroll information, and misrepresentations about employment history and business operations, enabling them to gain or attempt to gain control of more than $289,000 in federal relief funds. Jackson is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and three counts of wire fraud, and Morris is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The indictment further alleges that Jackson used interstate wires to deposit PPP funds into bank accounts she controlled and that both defendants used the fraudulently obtained funds for personal expenses, including food, shopping, travel, and vehicle rentals. 

Cedrick Kelly, 45, of Denham Springs, was indicted on wire fraud charges on Aug. 12. According to the indictment, Kelly purportedly falsely overstated his business income and provided a fictitious 2019 Schedule C tax form to support his claim, despite knowing the information was untrue. Based on these misrepresentations, an SBA-approved lender wired the PPP loan proceeds to Kelly’s bank account in the Middle District of Louisiana, funds that he was not entitled to receive. 

Elton R. Kelly, 46, of Baton Rouge, was indicted on wire fraud charges on Aug. 12. According to the indictment, Kelly purportedly overstated his business income, misrepresented his criminal history, and submitted a fictitious 2019 Schedule C tax form falsely claiming more than $99,000 in gross receipts. Based on these misrepresentations, an SBA-approved lender wired $20,732 in PPP funds to Kelly’s bank account in the Middle District of Louisiana, money he was not entitled to receive. 

Chris Plant Jr., 39, of White Castle, a local preacher, was indicted on wire fraud and making a false statement As set forth in the indictment, Plant allegedly devised a scheme to defraud a financial institution by filing false and fraudulent applications for PPP funds. In furtherance of the scheme, Plant allegedly submitted fraudulent and misleading documents, including fictitious 2019 and 2020 Schedule C tax forms, which falsely represented Plant’s gross receipts, expenses, and net profits for applicant businesses. Based on Plant’s purportedly false representations and fraudulent supporting materials, the financial institution approved and funded four PPP loans for a total amount of $77,081. 

Marvin Richardson, 29, of Baton Rouge, was indicted on wire fraud charges on Aug. 20. He allegedly obtained more than $28,000 in fraudulent pandemic-relief funds through the Small Business Administration’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). According to the indictment, Richardson submitted multiple false applications between July 2020 and May 2021, falsely overstating business revenues, employee counts, and income, and providing fabricated tax documents to support his claims. Based on these misrepresentations, Richardson received an $8,000 EIDL advance and a $20,832 PPP loan, which were transmitted to his bank account in the Middle District of Louisiana.

Guilty pleas and sentences announced:
Keerria Anderson, 33, of Baton Rouge, was sentenced to two years of supervised release and ordered to pay $50,962 in restitution after pleading guilty to wire fraud on Aug. 6. Anderson worked for the U.S. Postal Service between March 2016 and at least October 2022. Between July 2020 and at least October 2021, Anderson devised a scheme to defraud the United States, through the SBA and two financial institutions, by submitting applications for an EIDL and two PPP loans that contained false representations and documentation regarding her purported businesses and gross revenues and income. 

Lashae M. Bell, 33, and Johntrell Jamar White, 32, of Gonzales and Simmesport, were sentenced to 30 months and 27 months in federal prison for conspiring to defraud COVID-19 relief programs on July 9 and July 28, respectively. Bell was ordered to pay $851,241 in restitution, while White was ordered to pay $830,409. Bell and White submitted fraudulent unemployment insurance applications in their own names and in the names of others to numerous state workforce agencies and to Puerto Rico, and Bell also obtained Paycheck Protection Program funds through false statements. Judge Jackson ordered Bell to pay $851,241 in restitution and imposed a forfeiture money judgment of $164,891. The court also ordered White to pay $830,409 in restitution with a forfeiture money judgment of $135,300. According to their plea agreements, the defendants’ fraudulent claims caused state workforce agencies and the SBA to disburse hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal pandemic relief funds to which they were not entitled.

Daysha Renee Blount, 34, of Gonzales, pled guilty to wire fraud for fraudulently obtaining over $83,000 in Paycheck Protection Program loan proceeds on Aug. 13. Daysha Renee Blount, age 34, of Gonzales, Louisiana, pled guilty on August 13, 2026, to one count of wire fraud for fraudulently obtaining more than $83,000 in Paycheck Protection Program loan proceeds. According to court documents, Blount submitted four PPP loan applications in 2021—three in her own name and one on behalf of a company—using fabricated tax forms and altered bank records to falsely claim significant business income. She later submitted forgiveness applications containing additional false statements, resulting in all four loans being forgiven. 

Maletica V. Ferguson, 49, Vanshion J. Byrd, 51, and Makyro V. Ferguson, 26, all of Baton Rouge, pled guilty to conspiring to fraudulently obtain pandemic-relief funds through PPP, EIDL, and unemployment programs on July 7 and July 21. According to court documents, the defendants and their co-conspirators submitted numerous false applications supported by fabricated tax forms, altered bank records, and other fraudulent information, causing the disbursement of significant federal relief funds to which they were not entitled. Maletica Ferguson and Byrd entered their guilty pleas on July 7, and Makyro Ferguson pled guilty on July 21.

Lonell Taylor, 32, of Baton Rouge, was sentenced to five months in federal prison and ordered to pay $126,985.16 in restitution after pleading guilty to fraud on June 30. According to her plea agreement, Taylor was an employee of the U.S. Postal Service who falsely claimed for years that she had no outside income while receiving workers’ compensation benefits, despite actively operating two businesses and earning income. Taylor also devised a scheme to obtain pandemic-related Paycheck Protection Program funds by  submitting multiple fraudulent loan applications supported by fabricated tax documents, ultimately receiving more than $40,000 in SBA-backed PPP loans that she used for personal expenses.