A Wake County woman will serve eight years in prison and pay over $1.9 million for her part in defrauding a federal small business loan program during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Loretta Clarice James, 49, of Zebulon, pleaded guilty last year to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Chief U.S. District Judge Richard E. Myers II sentenced her to prison and five years supervised probation Thursday in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
Two co-defendants were sentenced earlier this year, according to a news release. Lakesha Bowles, 43, of Raleigh, was sentenced on April 24 for her role in the conspiracy, and on March 11, Darnell William King pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, court records show…