Columbus EIDL Loan Fraud Lawyers

Columbus EIDL Loan Fraud Lawyers

The SBA Office of Inspector General sent you a letter about your EIDL loan. Or federal agents contacted you in Columbus asking about your Economic Injury Disaster Loan application. You’re in Ohio. Ajay Chawla, 60, and his wife Ruhi Chawla, 50, pled guilty in June 2025 to fraudulently receiving more than $900,000 in pandemic relief funds – specifically four Paycheck Protection Plan loans and three Economic Injury Disaster Loans for their trucking and logistics businesses including Prime Transportation and Logistics Inc., ABC Trucking Inc., Apex Truck Lines LLC, and A1 Diesel Truck Repair LLC. Lashawnda Alexander, a former Cincinnati resident, was sentenced in January 2025 to 24 months in federal prison after being convicted by a jury in August 2024 of three counts of wire fraud for fraudulently obtaining $91,000 in EIDL funds. The Southern District of Ohio is actively prosecuting EIDL fraud cases in 2025.

Thanks for visiting Spodek Law Group – a second-generation law firm managed by Todd Spodek. We’ve defended federal EIDL fraud cases in Ohio for many, many, years. We know how Southern District prosecutors charge Economic Injury Disaster Loan fraud and what sentences you’re facing.

The federal government approved EIDL loans in 2020 with minimal verification. Now in 2025, they’re prosecuting Columbus-area business owners and family conspiracies. Here’s what happens in YOUR situation.

Ajay and Ruhi Chawla – $900,000 Family Conspiracy

Ajay Chawla, 60, and his wife Ruhi Chawla, 50, were charged on April 1, 2025, by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio with conspiring to commit wire fraud to obtain pandemic relief funds. The couple admitted that they fraudulently received more than $900,000 in pandemic relief funds – specifically receiving four Payroll Protection Plan loans and three Economic Injury Disaster Loans. On their loan applications, the Chawlas falsely reported the number of employees and gross revenues for their businesses: Prime Transportation and Logistics Inc., ABC Trucking Inc., Apex Truck Lines LLC, and A1 Diesel Truck Repair LLC. The information filed in April 2025 alleges that from at least March 2020 and continuing through at least June 2021, the Chawlas submitted fraudulent applications in the name of companies they owned and operated to obtain PPP loans and EIDLs, the husband-and-wife conspiracy involved creating four separate trucking and logistics companies to multiply the fraud across multiple business entities, the couple falsified employee numbers and gross revenues for each company to inflate the loan amounts they could obtain, by operating four companies they submitted seven total loan applications (four PPP loans plus three EIDL loans) that collectively obtained over $900,000 in fraudulent pandemic relief funds, the Chawlas pled guilty in June 2025 and are currently awaiting sentencing, wire fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1343 is punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison, family conspiracies like the Chawlas demonstrate how spouses coordinate to submit multiple fraudulent applications across several business entities, the Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General investigated the case because the fraud involved transportation and logistics companies.

The Chawlas’ case demonstrates how defendants use multiple business entities to multiply their fraud. Instead of submitting one fraudulent EIDL application for one company, they created four companies – Prime Transportation, ABC Trucking, Apex Truck Lines, A1 Diesel Truck Repair – and submitted applications for each. This pattern of creating multiple shell companies or operating several businesses simultaneously to obtain multiple EIDL and PPP loans is common in Southern District prosecutions. When federal agents investigate one company’s EIDL application and discover fraud, they identify related companies owned by the same individuals and uncover the full scope of the scheme.

Trial Penalty – Lashawnda Alexander’s 24-Month Sentence

Lashawnda Alexander, a former Cincinnati resident, was convicted of three counts of wire fraud following a jury trial in August 2024. She was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison in January 2025 for crimes related to pandemic relief fraud. Alexander fraudulently applied for EIDL loans claiming businesses with employees and significant revenue. She attempted to obtain at least $137,500 and ultimately received $91,000 in EIDL funds, including $20,000 in grants.

Alexander went to trial instead of pleading guilty. A federal jury convicted her in August 2024. She received 24 months in prison for $91,000 in fraud. The Chawlas pled guilty in June 2025 and are awaiting sentencing for over $900,000 in fraud. The sentencing disparity demonstrates the trial penalty. Alexander: $91,000 fraud, trial conviction, 24 months. Chawlas: $900,000 fraud (nearly 10 times Alexander’s amount), guilty plea, awaiting sentencing but expect 3-5 years. The difference in months-per-dollar demonstrates how federal prosecutors incentivize guilty pleas. Defendants who exercise their constitutional right to trial and are convicted face harsher sentences than defendants who plead guilty to larger fraud amounts.

Eric Ahiekpor – Luxury Spending Triggers Investigation

Eric Ahiekpor, 52, of Lewis Center, Ohio, pled guilty in June 2021 and was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison in February 2023 for wire fraud for his role in defrauding the EIDL program. In June 2020, Ahiekpor submitted an application for an Economic Injury Disaster Loan on behalf of Premier Choice Health Services, a business he owned. He obtained $150,000 in fraudulent EIDL funds. One day after receiving the relief funds, Ahiekpor bought a 2017 Sun Tracker “Fishin’ Barge 22 DKX” boat for $32,000, plus a motor and boat trailer. He spent the EIDL money on two boats, an outboard motor, and a trailer.

The timing demonstrates how luxury purchases trigger federal investigations. Ahiekpor received $150,000 in EIDL funds. The next day, he purchased a $32,000 boat. When EIDL funds deposited into business bank accounts flow immediately to luxury purchases – boats, vehicles, high-end recreational equipment – banks file Suspicious Activity Reports under the Bank Secrecy Act. The SBA Office of Inspector General reviews these reports and identifies fraud patterns.

Ahiekpor’s case also demonstrates cascading federal charges. At the time he fraudulently obtained the EIDL loan and bought boats, Ahiekpor was on release for charges related to conspiring to launder money from online romance scams. He was already facing federal money laundering charges when he committed EIDL fraud. Federal prosecutors charged him with both the romance scam money laundering conspiracy AND the separate EIDL fraud. When defendants commit new federal crimes while on release for pending federal charges, prosecutors add the new charges and judges impose consecutive sentences. Ahiekpor received 36 months for the EIDL fraud in addition to his sentence for the romance scam conspiracy.

How Southern District Prosecutes EIDL Fraud

Family conspiracies are common in EIDL prosecutions. The Chawla husband-and-wife team coordinated to submit fraudulent applications for four different companies. When one spouse submits applications, federal agents investigate whether other family members participated. Shared bank accounts, coordinated timing of applications, and similar false information across multiple companies indicate conspiracy. Conspiracy to commit wire fraud carries the same 20-year statutory maximum as wire fraud itself.

Multiple business entities multiply exposure. The Chawlas operated four companies and submitted seven loan applications. Each fraudulent application is a separate count of wire fraud. Seven applications mean seven potential counts, each carrying up to 20 years. Defendants who create multiple shell companies or operate several businesses to obtain multiple EIDL loans face dramatically higher sentences because each application adds another count.

The SBA cross-checks EIDL applications against IRS business tax returns. The Chawlas falsified employee numbers and gross revenues for Prime Transportation, ABC Trucking, Apex Truck Lines, and A1 Diesel Truck Repair. When the SBA cross-references the EIDL applications against IRS filings for these companies, discrepancies between reported revenues on tax returns and revenues claimed on EIDL applications trigger fraud investigations. If your EIDL application claimed $500,000 in annual revenue but your IRS Schedule C or corporate tax returns show $100,000, automatic fraud flag.

Luxury spending patterns trigger Bank Secrecy Act reports. Ahiekpor bought boats the day after receiving $150,000 in EIDL funds. Banks report large transactions and suspicious patterns. When business account deposits from EIDL loans flow immediately to personal luxury purchases, Suspicious Activity Reports go to the SBA Office of Inspector General. Federal agents then investigate the underlying EIDL application for fraud.

Trial versus plea outcomes differ dramatically. Alexander: trial conviction for $91,000 = 24 months. Chawlas: guilty plea for $900,000 = awaiting sentencing but expect 3-5 years. Per dollar of fraud, Alexander received a harsher sentence because she went to trial. Federal EIDL fraud cases have 97%+ conviction rates at trial. Documentary evidence – your EIDL application with your signature, your IRS tax returns showing actual business revenue, your bank statements showing how you spent EIDL funds – makes conviction nearly certain.

The mistake Columbus business owners make: responding to initial SBA Office of Inspector General audit letters without legal counsel. They think explaining discrepancies will resolve the issue. Instead, statements like “I may have overstated my business revenue on the EIDL application” become admissions of wire fraud. “I didn’t realize EIDL required exact figures from tax returns” is a confession, not a defense. By the time they hire a federal criminal defense attorney, they’ve already confessed.

Cooperation value matters in family conspiracies. When husband-and-wife teams or family members coordinate EIDL fraud, the first to cooperate receives sentence reductions. If Ajay Chawla cooperates against Ruhi Chawla (or vice versa), the cooperating spouse receives a reduced sentence. In multi-defendant conspiracies, early cooperation against co-conspirators results in dramatically shorter sentences.

At Spodek Law Group – Todd Spodek has defended federal EIDL fraud cases in Ohio for many, many, years. If the SBA Office of Inspector General sent you a letter – if federal agents asked to interview you about your Economic Injury Disaster Loan – time matters. Southern District of Ohio has active 2025 prosecutions. Chawla pled guilty in June 2025. Alexander sentenced January 2025. Call 212-300-5196.