Tucson PPP Loan Fraud Lawyers

Tucson PPP Loan Fraud Lawyers

You got contacted about your PPP loan. Not by the SBA – by federal investigators operating out of Tucson. FBI Phoenix Field Office, maybe IRS Criminal Investigation, possibly SBA Office of Inspector General. You’re in Tucson, which means the District of Arizona US Attorney’s Office handles your case – prosecuted at the Evo A. DeConcini United States Courthouse in Tucson, the federal courthouse serving southern Arizona. Thanks for visiting Spodek Law Group. Todd Spodek is a second-generation criminal defense attorney who has handled hundreds of federal fraud prosecutions, including dozens of PPP cases in federal districts across the country.

Here’s what happens when Tucson’s federal prosecutors investigate your PPP loan and what you need to understand about the choices you have in the next 48 hours.

Tucson Federal Division Handles Southern Arizona

Arizona’s federal district operates through multiple divisions. Tucson handles southern Arizona prosecutions at the Evo A. DeConcini United States Courthouse at 405 West Congress Street. The District of Arizona US Attorney’s Office operates out of both Tucson and Phoenix, prosecuting pandemic loan fraud under mandatory Guidelines. Tucson prosecutors handle fewer PPP fraud cases than Phoenix but follow identical Guidelines-based sentencing. The FBI Phoenix Field Office coordinates investigations throughout Arizona, including Tucson metro. Southern Arizona business owners – Tucson, Sierra Vista, Yuma – face the same federal wire fraud statutes as Phoenix defendants. Loss amount determines sentencing, not which Arizona division prosecutes your case. IRS Criminal Investigation and SBA Office of Inspector General collaborate with FBI on PPP fraud investigations throughout southern Arizona.

Here’s what most Tucson residents don’t know: the overwhelming majority of criminal defense attorneys here handle state crimes. DUI, drug offenses, assault – state charges prosecuted in Arizona courts under Arizona law. Federal fraud prosecution operates under completely different rules. Different statutes, different courthouse, different prosecutors with different resources. When Tucson business owners hire the attorney who handled their DUI, they’re bringing a state practitioner to a federal prosecution. The District of Arizona US Attorney’s Office recognizes this immediately – and the plea offers reflect it.

That “Clarification Interview”

Most PPP fraud defendants cooperate immediately without counsel. Federal agents frame initial contact as administrative clarification. “We’re reviewing your PPP application and noticed some discrepancies. Can you help us understand how you calculated your payroll expenses?” That sounds like a reasonable request to fix paperwork errors. It’s criminal investigation. When you sit down to “clarify” your PPP application without an attorney, agents already subpoenaed your bank records – every deposit, withdrawal, check, wire transfer from the day you received PPP funds forward. They pulled your tax returns for 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021. They have your original PPP application, your forgiveness application if submitted, your banking institution’s records. They compared your application’s payroll figures to your 941 quarterly payroll tax filings. They know what you claimed. They know what your returns show. They know where the money went. Now they need your statements to prove intent – that you knew the information was false when you submitted it. The Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination exists precisely for this scenario. You are not obligated to provide the government with evidence to prosecute you. But here’s what happens when defendants talk anyway. You say you “estimated” payroll based on projected hiring. That becomes evidence you knew the current payroll didn’t support the loan amount. You explain you used PPP funds for “business expenses” – rent, utilities, inventory. That becomes evidence you knew PPP was designated for payroll and certain other limited expenses. Your own words, offered in good faith, become the evidence that establishes criminal intent under 18 USC Section 1343.

The lawyered path functions differently. Your attorney doesn’t let you explain away discrepancies – those explanations become admissions. Instead, counsel evaluates what the government has, what they can prove without your statements, and whether the evidence demonstrates knowing false statements versus negligent errors. That distinction matters because it’s the difference between wire fraud (20 years maximum) and no charges at all. Timeline matters. Early intervention in Tucson PPP cases creates leverage for pretrial diversion, declined prosecution, or favorable plea terms.

Actual Sentencing Numbers

The theoretical maximum sentence under 18 USC Section 1343 is 20 years federal imprisonment. That’s not what happens. Federal sentencing operates through mandatory Guidelines based on loss amount. The United States Sentencing Guidelines don’t have a “PPP discount” or “pandemic sympathy” provision. Fraud is fraud. Loss amount determines your base offense level, which determines your Guidelines range, which determines your actual prison time. Small PPP loans ($10,000 to $50,000) with clear fraud typically result in probation to 12 months for first-time offenders who accept responsibility. Medium loans ($50,000 to $250,000) produce 18-36 month sentences – the most common range in Tucson prosecutions. Large loans ($250,000 to $1 million) result in 36-60 month sentences. Three factors affect where you land. Loss amount matters most – every dollar counts. Your criminal history matters second. No prior convictions means you’re in Criminal History Category I, lower end of the range. Acceptance of responsibility matters third. Federal Guidelines provide 2-3 level reductions if you plead guilty and accept responsibility. A defendant facing 36-48 months drops to 24-30 months with acceptance. That’s why most PPP fraud cases resolve through plea agreements rather than trial.

But here’s what changed between 2021 and 2025. Early pandemic loan fraud defendants benefited from judicial sympathy – “these were unusual times, the program was confusing, mistakes were made.” That sympathy has evaporated. Tucson federal judges now view PPP fraud through the lens of taxpayer theft during crisis. Defendants sentenced in 2024-2025 receive prison terms approximately 40% longer than those sentenced in 2021-2022 for identical loan amounts and conduct.

Loss amount fights matter because they determine everything. If your PPP application claimed $175,000 but prosecutors can only prove $120,000 was fraudulently obtained, you just dropped from one Guidelines bracket to another – potentially 12-18 months less prison time. Tucson prosecutors fight these calculations hard because they know loss amount determines sentencing exposure, and sentencing exposure determines whether defendants take plea offers or risk trial.

You have three choices. First: cooperate with investigators without counsel. You sit for the interview, answer their questions, “clarify” your application. What happens next: your statements become prosecution exhibits. Most defendants who choose this path realize too late that the “clarification” interview was the investigation’s critical moment. By the time they hire counsel, their own words have established the government’s case. Second: retain counsel immediately. Before any statements, before any interviews, before responding to document requests. Your attorney evaluates what the government has, communicates that you’re represented, determines whether cooperation benefits you. This is the objectively superior path. Early intervention means we control what evidence the government gets. Third: ignore investigators. Don’t respond to calls, don’t answer emails, don’t engage. What happens: they indict you. This is the worst option. It demonstrates consciousness of guilt without providing Fifth Amendment protection, it eliminates pretrial resolution possibilities, and it signals to prosecutors that you won’t cooperate.

The choice you make in the next 48 hours determines your sentencing range. Todd Spodek has handled hundreds of federal fraud prosecutions, including PPP cases in federal districts nationwide. We’re available 24/7 at 212-300-5196.