A Massachusets pizza shop owner was charged and arrested on Tuesday after he used a fraudulent PPP loan to buy an alpaca farm, according to NBC10 Philadelphia.
In April 2020, 57-year-old Dana McIntyre, of Grafton, Vermont, lied about the number of employees his pizza shop had to receive more than $660,000 in federal coronavirus relief funds, according to authorities. In a forged official tax form, he said that his pizza parlor had almost 50 employees when documents show that it has fewer than 10.
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NBC10 Philadelphia reports that once he received the loan, he sold the pizza shop and used the money to buy and upgrade an alpaca farm in Vermont.
On Tuesday, McIntyre appeared in court and was released on a $100,000 unsecured bond after having to give up his passport.
McIntyre is being charged with wire fraud and money laundering, according to a statement from the U.S. attorney’s office in Boston. According to authorities, if McIntyre is found guilty he will face up to 40 years in prison and $750,000 in fines.