Fraudulent EIDL & PPP Loans, Fabricated COVID Tests, and Stolen Hotel Stays – Fraud Friday

March 8, 2024

Delaney Sexton
Contributing Editor

Fraudulent EIDL & PPP Loans, Fabricated COVID Tests, and Stolen Hotel Stays – Fraud Friday

“Tatiana Daniel repeatedly exploited resources offered to help people and businesses in crisis.  Her misconduct included selling fabricated COVID-19 test results, which likely put members of the public at risk of contracting the deadly virus from one of her customers.  Daniel’s sentence reaffirms that those who illegally exploit disaster relief programs and endanger the public should expect to go to prison,” says U.S. Attorney Damian Williams.

Tatiana Daniel was sentenced to 33 months in prison for taking full advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic and all the relief programs that came with it. Her fraud spanned PPP, EIDL, New York City’s COVID-19 Hotel Room Isolation Program, unemployment insurance benefits fraud, and selling fabricated COVID-19 test results.

She took advantage of SBA funding by submitting fraudulent applications to the PPP and EIDL programs. The U.S. Attorney’s Office states that Tatiana and a co-conspirator received thousands of dollars, but they did not offer an explicit amount. Based on a PPP borrower search on the Pandemic Oversight website, it appears Tatiana Daniel was approved for an $8,332 PPP loan from Prestamos CDFI in 2021. She claimed that she was a sole proprietor in the transportation and warehousing industry.  

Her greatest fraud scheme involved the COVID-19 Hotel Room Isolation Program. New York City offered free hotel rooms to individuals who qualified: healthcare workers exposed to COVID-19, patients who tested positive for COVID-19, individuals who believed they were infected with COVID-19, and individuals who lived with someone that had COVID-19. An individual could qualify for up to two full weeks at a hotel free of charge in order to self-isolate. Tatiana claimed she was a healthcare worker, more specifically a respiratory therapist, to book free hotel rooms for herself.

She also sold at least 144 nights worth of fraudulently obtained hotel rooms to ineligible customers. Tatiana connected with customers and communicated with them through Facebook. In one example, a customer asked for a hotel room in downtown Brooklyn for Father’s Day. Tatiana responded:

“Good morning, yes I have hotels. 3 night minimum 45$ a night, breakfast included… right now I currently have the Hilton and Hamilton downtown Brooklyn…”

In a third scheme, Tatiana attempted to obtain almost $100,000 in COVID-19 Unemployment Insurance benefits for herself and others. She stole the identities of over 10 other individuals and collected unemployment benefits under their names, and she made false representations to secure benefits for herself. While Tatiana did try to file for benefits in other states, those attempts were unsuccessful.

Another facet of her fraud was the operation of a fraudulent document mill. Tatiana sold COVID test results, hardship letters, doctor’s notes, pay stubs, W2s, work verification letters, and more. Individuals could purchase both positive and negative test results which included the names of purported medical personnel.

Along with prison time, Tatiana agreed to forfeit $109,655 and pay restitution of $401,206.

Sources:
U.S. Attorney’s Office Press Release
Pandemic Oversight PPP Borrower Search
Sealed Complaint