PHOENIX — A federal judge has sentenced a former Phoenix police officer to 15 months in prison for a PPP loan fraud case.
Toni Richardson submitted a false application for Paycheck Protection Program loan money. The program was created to help businesses keep their employees and avoid shutting down during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Richardson was arrested last year after investigators discovered she submitted a false PPP loan application to obtain money for a business, named "The Lotto Club."
In total, Richardson and another person obtained $1,276,500 in PPP money for their business, but allegedly used the money for personal expenses and transferred the money to personal banking accounts, court documents stated.
Court paperwork stated that Richardson was 100% owner of the business and didn’t have any payroll or employees.
In addition to time behind bars, Richardson was ordered by a judge on Monday to pay more than $1 million in restitution to the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Richardson worked as an officer for the Phoenix Police Department, and she resigned last year as the department moved to terminate her employment.
