Multi-million dollar COVID 19 scheme lands ex-SC postal worker in prison
A former U.S. postal worker who federal prosecutors say was a leader in a multi-million dollar scheme to defraud the government during COVID-19 is going to prison, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Columbia.
Tiffany McFadden, who lists addresses in Brooklyn, N.Y., and Port St. Lucie, Fla., was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison, followed by five years of court-ordered supervision, a news release from the federal prosecutor’s office said.
McFadden, 40, led an illicit plan in South Carolina that was responsible for more than 400 fraudulent applications for federal aid related to the coronavirus pandemic, prosecutors said. She and others involved in the scheme received more than $2 million, often in $20,000 increments, the news release said.
The scheme was related to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security law’s Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP. Congress had authorized the PPP effort to help businesses hurt by COVID-19, a disease so contagious it shut down businesses and left them struggling to survive.
Many fraudulent applications for aid were made in the eastern South Carolina communities of Kingstree, Johnsonville and Hemingway. McFadden is originally from the Kingstree area, her lawyer said.
Prosecutors say the scheme involved two postal workers and McFadden, a former postal service worker whose attorney said had left the service by the time the illicit activities took place. Court records show that McFadden pled guilty to one count in the federal indictment against her: conspiracy to commit wire fraud related to PPP loans.
“Every dollar stolen from the PPP program was stolen from legitimate businesses who needed support during unprecedented challenges facing our country,” U.S. Attorney Adair F. Boroughs said in a news release. “This scheme took advantage of the public’s generosity by stealing millions from taxpayers.’’
Cezar McKnight, an attorney representing McFadden, said his client is sorry, will serve her sentence and move on with her life. McFadden, who served time in the Navy, is a mother of four children and married to a man training to be an airline pilot, McKnight said.
“My client expressed remorse for her actions and is grateful that the United States Attorney’s Office did not come after her as hard as it could have; they were very merciful,’’ McKnight said. “She does not take this lightly. She sees the error of her ways.’’
Felony charges related to the scheme are pending against two other defendants, Cherry Lewis, 43, of Johnsonville, and Keisha Lewis, 33, of Hemingway. If convicted, those defendants face up to 20 years in prison, The State previously reported.
The U.S Secret Service investigated the case with assistance from multiple agencies, including the Williamsburg County Sheriff’s Office.
