Oklahoma City PPP Loan Fraud Lawyers

Your brother helped you with the applications. Your spouse handled the bank accounts. Your cousin recruited the fake employees. What felt like family helping family with a business opportunity has become something much worse - a federal conspiracy case where every relative who touched the fraud is now a potential defendant and a potential witness against you.

When family members participated in your fraud, prosecutors don't see multiple defendants - they see conspiracy charges that multiply everyone's exposure.

Welcome to Spodek Law Group. Our goal is to tell you what other websites won't: in Oklahoma City and the Western District of Oklahoma, PPP fraud prosecutions frequently involve family members. The Shaw family faced a 28-count federal indictment - four family members and two associates charged together for nearly $1 million in fraud. William and Michelle Sullivan, husband and wife, both received federal prison sentences for there $2.7 million conspiracy. The family members who helped you didnt just participate in your scheme - they created a conspiracy that transforms individual fraud charges into organized criminal activity.

One person committing PPP fraud faces wire fraud charges. A family committing PPP fraud together faces conspiracy charges plus individual fraud charges plus money laundering charges plus the impossible choice of testifying against relatives or accepting enhanced sentences.

If your facing PPP fraud charges in Oklahoma City, if the FBI has contacted you about pandemic relief loans, if family members received target letters alongside you - you need to understand that family involvement doesnt reduce your exposure. It multiplies it. And the cooperation dynamics that follow will force relatives to choose between prison time and testifying against each other.

When Family Help Becomes Family Conspiracy

Most PPP fraud defendants involved family members without thinking about the legal consequences. Your spouse signed documents. Your sibling helped recruit employees. Your cousin handled bank transfers. It felt natural - family helps family.

Thats not how Oklahoma prosecutors see it.

Heres what actualy happens when family members participate in PPP fraud. Each person who touched the fraud becomes a defendant. Each defendant faces there own charges. But the family involvement also creates conspiracy charges - a separate federal offense that applies to everyone who agreed to participate in the scheme. Conspiracy charges dont require that each person committed every act. They require only that multiple people agreed to commit fraud together.

When family members participated in your fraud, prosecutors see conspiracy charges that multiply everyone's exposure. A solo defendant facing $100,000 in PPP fraud might be charged with wire fraud and bank fraud. A family facing the same $100,000 fraud gets conspiracy charges added on top. Conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Each family member faces both the conspiracy charges and there individual participation charges.

OK so heres the part that makes family fraud prosecutions particuarly devastating. The conspiracy itself is a separate crime. The agreement to commit fraud - not the fraud itself, but the agreement - carries its own penalty. Every family member can be charged with conspiracy even if they only played a small role in the actual fraud. The person who recruited fake employees faces the same conspiracy charges as the person who submitted applications. The family member who only transferred money faces conspiracy alongside the person who orchestrated everything.

And the cooperation pressure in family cases is unlike anything prosecutors have in other fraud cases. When unrelated codefendants face conspiracy charges, they evaluate cooperation as a business decision. When family members face conspiracy charges, they have to decide whether to testify against siblings, parents, children, or spouses. Prosecutors use this leverage deliberatley. They approach family members seperately. They offer reduced sentences for testimony. They force impossible choices that tear families apart.

The Shaw Family Indictment

Let me show you exactly what family conspiracy prosecution looks like in Oklahoma.

In August 2023, a federal grand jury returned a 28-count indictment against six Oklahoma residents. Four of them shared the same last name: Corey Donta Shaw, Eric Dewayne Shaw, Marqus Dejuan Shaw, and Marquita Deshawn Shaw. The other two defendants - Amie Street and Shatara Marie Brevelle - were associates who participated in the scheme. Together, they faced charges for fraudulently obtaining nearly $1 million in PPP loans.

Think about that indictment. 28 counts. Six defendants. Four family members. Nearly $1 million. This wasnt a single person making bad decisions - this was a family operation that prosecutors characterized as organized criminal activity.

The charges tell the story prosecutors want juries to understand. Conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Wire fraud. Money laundering. Making false statements to a financial institution. Making false statements. False representation of a social security number. Each charge applied to multiple defendants. Each defendant faced exposure on multiple charges.

The Shaw family faced 28 counts because 6 people participated in one fraud scheme. The family involvement didnt dilute there exposure - it concentrated prosecution resources against all of them simultaneousely. Six defendants meant six potential cooperating witnesses. Six defendants meant six plea negotiations where each person faced pressure to provide information about the others.

Heres something else practitioners understand about the Shaw case. Marquita Deshawn Shaw allegedly created fictitious identities to obtain additional PPP loan proceeds. The defendants allegedly submitted fake and altered documents - bank statements, identification documents, tax records. The sophistication of the fraud, combined with the family organization, created a prosecution focused on dismantling an organized criminal operation rather than punishing individual fraud.

The case was investigated by the PRAC Task Force along with SBA-OIG, SSA-OIG, IRS Criminal Investigation, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, and local police departments. Multiple federal and state agencies coordinating on one family. That level of investigative resources demonstrates how seriously prosecutors take organized family fraud schemes.

What Oklahoma Sentences Actually Look Like

Let me show you whats actualy happening in Oklahoma's federal courts right now. These arnt hypotheticals. These are real sentences from real family-involved prosecutions.

William Mark Sullivan - Tulsa. Conspiracy with wife. $2.7 million in fraudulent PPP applications. Age 50. Sentence: 36 months federal prison. Restitution: $743,776.98 (joint with wife). Supervised release: 5 years.

Michelle Cadman-Sullivan - Tulsa. Conspiracy with husband. Same $2.7 million scheme. Age 43. Sentence: 24 months federal prison. Both spouses sentenced within two days of each other.

Madinah Malikah Montgomery - Oklahoma City. 3 EIDL loans totaling $385,000. Received $300,000. Claimed 10 employees for salon that didnt exist. Age 33. Sentence: 24 months federal prison. Restitution: $300,000. Judge noted extensive criminal history.

Lauren Michelle Owen - Jenks. PPP fraud. Age 40. Sentence: 27 months federal prison. Restitution: $1.2 million+. Supervised release: 5 years.

Malcolm Andre Jones - Broken Arrow. PPP fraud. Age 32. Sentence: 27 months federal prison. Supervised release: 3 years.

Brian Lee Foster - Norman. Made false statements on PPP applications in another person's name. Age 54. Sentence: 2 years federal prison. Identity theft component.

Ladawn Shazzelle Pinkney - Tulsa. PPP fraud scheme participant. Sentence: 6 months federal prison + 6 months home confinement. Lesser role reduction.

Heres the pattern you should notice. The Sullivan couple together received 60 months combined - 36 for him, 24 for her. If William Sullivan had committed the same fraud alone, his individual exposure might have been similar. But because his wife participated, prosecutors got two defendants, two plea agreements, two sentences, and two people serving federal time. The family involvement doubled the prosecution's results.

And the restitution compounds across family members. The Sullivans were jointly ordered to pay $743,776.98. That debt follows both of them. Both spouses carry the financial burden. The family fraud didnt split the consequences - it multiplied them across everyone involved.

The Montgomery case demonstrates how judges view repeat offenders. U.S. District Judge Stephen P. Friot specifically noted her extensive criminal history when imposing sentence. Oklahoma judges dont have sympathy for defendants who commit fraud repeatedly - they impose sentences designed to deter future criminal activity. Montgomery's 24 months reflected both the fraud itself and her history of criminal conduct. The Judge made clear that prior sentences had failed to deter her from criminal activity - and this sentence was designed to finaly accomplish what previous consequences hadnt.

Heres something else practitioners understand about Oklahoma sentencing. The difference between a 6-month sentence like Pinkney received and a 36-month sentence like Sullivan received often comes down to role and cooperation. Pinkney's lesser role reduction suggests she provided information or accepted responsibility early. Sullivan's 36 months suggests prosecutors viewed him as an organizer who didnt cooperate. The cooperation decisions made early in prosecution determine outcomes measured in years.

The Husband-Wife Pattern

The Sullivan case demonstrates exactly how spousal involvement transforms PPP fraud prosecution.

William Mark Sullivan was 50 years old. His wife Michelle Cadman-Sullivan was 43. Together, they fraudulently applied for aproximately $2.7 million in PPP loans from area banks. Both pleaded guilty in June 2022 to conspiracy to commit bank fraud.

Heres what makes husband-wife prosecutions particuarly devastating. Everything spouses did together becomes evidence. Joint bank accounts show how funds moved. Shared email accounts reveal communications. Testimony from one spouse about conversations with the other is admissible. The intimacy that made collaboration easy also makes prosecution easier.

The Sullivans were sentenced within two days of each other in October 2023. William received 36 months. Michelle received 24 months. Both received 5 years of supervised release. Both were ordered to pay restitution. The family that committed fraud together now serves time together - and carries debt together when they emerge.

Think about the cooperation dynamics in a husband-wife case. If prosecutors approach one spouse offering reduced charges for testimony against the other, what happens? The spouse who cooperates might receive leniency. The spouse who dosent faces enhanced exposure. Prosecutors use this leverage deliberatley. They know that threatening to separate families through differential sentencing creates enormous pressure to cooperate.

And the Sullivan case shows what happens when neither spouse cooperates effectivley enough to avoid prison. Both ended up serving federal time. Both lost years of there lives. Both emerged with felony convictions. The family involvement that seemed to make the fraud easier actualy resulted in both spouses serving substantial sentences rather than one person facing consequences alone.

Heres something else practitioners understand about spousal fraud cases. Financial records reveal everything. Bank statements show deposits and withdrawals. Tax returns show income claims. Property records show purchases. When spouses commit fraud together, the documentation creates a complete picture that neither spouse can explain away. The joint nature of there finances becomes the joint nature of there prosecution.

When Relatives Must Choose Between Loyalty and Prison

The worst moment in family PPP fraud cases comes when prosecutors offer deals.

Heres how it works. Federal agents contact family members seperately. They explain the evidence against everyone. They describe the potential sentences. Then they offer a choice: cooperate against relatives and receive consideration, or refuse and face full exposure.

The first family member to cooperate typically receives the best treatment. The last family member to cooperate - or the one who refuses entirely - faces the harshest consequences. Prosecutors structure these offers to reward early cooperation and punish delay.

In the Shaw family case, six defendants faced these choices. Marquita Shaw, Corey Shaw, Eric Shaw, Marqus Shaw, Amie Street, Shatara Brevelle - each one had to decide whether to provide information about the others. The family loyalty that enabled the fraud becomes the family division that prosecutors exploit.

Think about your own situation. If family members participated in your PPP fraud, prosecutors may already be approaching them. Your sibling might be considering cooperation right now. Your spouse might be evaluating whether to testify against you. The family member you trusted most might be the one providing information that builds the case against you.

Call 888-997-5177 before your relatives become cooperating witnesses against you. Not becuase were trying to frighten you into hiring a lawyer. Becuase in Oklahoma, family fraud creates family prosecution - and the cooperation dynamics force impossible choices that determine whether you serve months or years.

The cooperation cascade in family cases moves quickly. Once one family member provides information, prosecutors use that information to strengthen cases against others. The strengthened case creates more pressure on remaining family members to cooperate. Each cooperation agreement reduces options for everyone else. Waiting to engage counsel means watching relatives secure favorable treatment while your own exposure increases.

The investigation methodology in Oklahoma family cases has become increasinly sophisticated. The Shaw case was investigated by the PRAC Task Force coordinating with SSA-OIG, SBA-OIG, IRS Criminal Investigation, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, and local police departments. Multiple federal and state agencies working together on one family. That level of investigative coordination demonstrates how seriousely prosecutors take organized family fraud schemes. They dont treat family fraud as individual cases that happen to involve relatives - they treat it as organized criminal activity requiring coordinated investigative response.

The financial documentation in family cases creates compleat exposure. Bank statements showing transfers between family members. Tax returns filed by multiple relatives. Property records showing purchases across the family. Each family member's financial records corroborate the others. The same documentation that made family coordination easy now makes family prosecution comprehensive. Prosecutors reconstruct the entire scheme through records that family members created together.

And the family relationships never recover from these prosecutions. When siblings testify against each other, when spouses provide information to reduce there own sentences, the relationships are destroyed. The fraud that seemed like family helping family becomes family destroying family in courtrooms. Prosecutors know this. They use family loyalty as a weapon, offering deals that require betrayal.

Why Early Intervention Matters Before Family Testifies

If your facing PPP fraud allegations in Oklahoma City - if the FBI has contacted you, if family members received target letters, if you know relatives participated in your fraud scheme - you need to understand the limited window for effective intervention.

Family conspiracy cases move quickly once they start. Prosecutors identify all participants. They approach family members seperately. They build cases using testimony from relatives who cooperate. By the time you realize the full scope of your exposure, your family members may already be negotiating deals that include testifying against you.

Heres the reality. The statute of limitations gives prosecutors time. The PPP and Bank Fraud Enforcement Harmonization Act of 2022 extended the statute to 10 years. That means prosecutors have until 2030-2032 to pursue fraudulent applications from 2020. Your family fraud scheme might not have attracted investigation yet. But the evidence exists in bank records, application files, and the memories of every family member who participated.

Early intervention creates possibilities that vanish after relatives cooperate. Defense attorneys can approach prosecutors before family testimony is locked in. They can position clients for there own cooperation credit if thats appropriate. They can potentially influence which family member is viewed as the organizer and which as lesser participants. They can help families navigate impossible choices with full understanding of the consequences. And they can coordinate defense strategies across multiple family members when thats the right approach - ensuring that cooperation decisions benefit the family as a whole rather than sacrificing some members to protect others.

The distinction between organizer and participant matters enormousely in family cases. William Sullivan received 36 months. Michelle Sullivan received 24 months. Ladawn Pinkney received 6 months. The differential reflects how prosecutors viewed each person's role. Early intervention allows defendants to establish there role before prosecutors characterize them as organizers facing enhanced sentences.

At Spodek Law Group, Todd Spodek has handled hundreds of federal fraud cases involving family members and conspiracy charges. The defendants who call before relatives start cooperating have meaningful choices. The defendants who call after siblings have already testified are often negotiating how many years they'll serve rather than whether they'll serve any.

Spodek Law Group. The Woolworth Building, 233 Broadway Suite 710, New York. We put this information on our website becuase most defendants dont understand how family involvement transforms prosecution. Our goal isnt to scare you. Its to make sure you understand that in Oklahoma, the family members who helped with your fraud are now potential witnesses against you. The cooperation decisions happening right now determine whether you face months or decades.

In Oklahoma City, family fraud creates family prosecution. The Shaw family faced 28 counts because six people participated together. The Sullivans both serve federal prison time. When relatives help with fraud, prosecutors get conspiracy charges, multiple defendants, and leverage to force cooperation through impossible choices. The family involvement that seemed to make your fraud easier actualy multiplied your exposure. And your relatives are deciding right now whether loyalty to you is worth prison time. Some of them will conclude it isnt.