A Monroe County man has been charged with $450,000 in COVID-relief fraud.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that on Nov. 2, Julian J. Levons, 64, of Henryville, was charged in an indictment with perpetrating a wire fraud and money laundering scheme to obtain and attempt to obtain about $450,000 in COVID-19 relief guaranteed by the Small Business Administration through the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program.

The EIDL program is designed to help small businesses facing financial difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Funded by the March 2020 CARES Act, EIDL funds are offered in low-interest rate loans, designated for specific business expenses, such as fixed debts, payroll and business obligation.

According to acting United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, the indictment alleges that Levons obtained two EIDL loans for a combined amount of about $300,000, and attempted unsuccessfully to obtain a third EIDL loan for about $150,000.

In applying for the loans, Levons falsified revenue and expense figures for two supposed small businesses that he and his wife owned.

The money was allegedly used to pay down a high interest rate line of credit for Levons’ personal expenses, and to pay off a high interest rate mortgage on a rental property, despite prohibitions on the use of EIDL funds to refinance pre-existing debt.

Investigators seized over $210,000 in fraudulently obtained EIDL funds from bank accounts under his control. Levons was charged with conspiracies to commit wire fraud and money laundering, five counts of wire fraud, and three counts of illegal monetary transactions.

The case was investigated by the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Phillip J. Caraballo is prosecuting the case.

On May 17, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud.

The task force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts.