By Ciara Perez, Investigative Journalist | iSkyCreations – News & Media (ISC)
Published Jan 29th, 2024
DUBLIN, GA — In a striking example of pandemic-related fraud, a Georgia woman, Gladys Harun, 44, of Byron, Ga., has been sentenced to five years in prison for defrauding COVID-19 small business relief programs. U.S. Attorney Jill E. Steinberg for the Southern District of Georgia announced that Harun is also ordered to repay $552,679 and will be under supervised release for three years following her prison term. Notably, there is no parole in the federal system.
Harun, a franchisee of a tax preparation service operating multiple locations in Georgia, admitted to lying to investigators from the Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General. She was found guilty of submitting fraudulent applications to a California lender under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL), falsely obtaining over half a million dollars.