Two Westchester men implicated in $4.6M PPP loan scheme

Two Westchester men have been accused of participating in a pandemic loan relief scheme that allegedly netted $4.6 million in ill-gotten gains for dozens of people.

Glenroy Walker, 65, of New Rochelle, was accused of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. He was arrested on June 6 and released from custody on posting a $250,000 personal recognizance bond.

Gary Wheeler, 46, of Mount Vernon, was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and was released on a $100,000 bond.

According to a criminal complaint unsealed on June 6 in U.S. District Court, White Plains, six people conspired from July 2020 to February 2022 to submit fraudulent applications for Paycheck Protection Program loans.

More than a hundred loan applications, seeking $14.7 million for 56 individuals were submitted, according to the complaint. Thirty-nine loans totaling $4.6 million were approved.

The loan program was created in 2020 by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act to help small businesses weather the pandemic. The loans were issued by banks, guaranteed by the federal government and overseen by the U.S. Small Business Administration.

The funds had to be used for specific purposes, such as covering payroll, mortgages, rent and utilities. If spent properly, the loans could be forgiven, in essence, giving small businesses windfalls to help them survive the economic calamity caused by the pandemic.

Walker and Howard Levy, 60, of the Bronx, allegedly submitted PPP loan applications that included false information.

They created phony federal tax returns using the names of actual tax accountants who were not involved in the scheme, according to the complaint, fabricated bank statements, and typically received 15% of the PPP funds received as kickbacks.

One witness told investigators that he was self-employed and had no employees, according to the complaint. But his PPP application, prepared by Levy, stated that the business employed 13 people. The application included a fraudulent bank statement showing a $46,858 payroll and an IRS tax form prepared by an accountant who said he had not prepared the form.

The witness told  investigators that he wrote a $23,468.50 check to Levy’s firm, Access Accounting Systems, to pay for his services.

Walker allegedly used several corporate entities he had formed over the years to receive kickbacks and to share kickbacks with Levy.

For example, Gary Wheeler, of Mount Vernon, received PPP loans totaling $412,375 for Peak Business Group, Garden Bar & Grill, and Matrix Data Group, according to the complaint.

Wheeler wired $61,856 to Ebony Business Group Jamaica Inc., a New Rochelle company controlled by Walker, according to the complaint. Then Walker wired half, $30,928, to Levy.

Investigators contend that the wire transfers were kickbacks for obtaining PPP funds.

Sherril Baez, 50, of Freeport, Nassau County; Norma Getten, 62, of the Bronx; and Donnat Powell, 48, of Paterson, New Jersey, also were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

White Plains attorney Richard A. Portale said in an email that some articles have depicted Wheeler incorrectly.

“Mr. Wheeler is not accused of being an organizer or recruiting others,” he stated in an email. “Rather, PPP applications for three businesses owned by Mr. Wheeler were submitted by Mr. Levy and his ‘accounting services.'”

Manhattan attorney William H. Newman said Getten “recognizes the serious nature of the allegations and will respond to them at the appropriate time.”

Attorneys representing Baez, Levy, Powell and Walker did not reply to emails asking for their clients’ sides of the story.

The investigation was led by the FBI’s White Collar and Public Corruption Task Force Squad in Westchester. The case is being handled by assistant federal prosecutors Jared Hoffman and Derek Wikstrom.