How Many People Have Been Arrested for PPP Fraud?

How Many People Have Been Arrested for PPP Fraud? The Number Isn’t the Answer – It’s a Warning

You want a number. Here it is: as of late 2024, the Department of Justice has charged 3,096 defendants with PPP fraud. Of those, 2,532 have been convicted. Of those, 1,741 are in prison right now. That’s the number you’re looking for. But that number isn’t an answer – it’s a position on a timeline that stretches five more years into the future.

Welcome to the Spodek Law Group resource on what PPP fraud arrest statistics actually mean. Our goal is to help you understand something the numbers don’t reveal: for every person arrested, there are 200 more flagged and waiting in line. The SBA referred over 669,000 potentially fraudulent loans for investigation. The government has only prosecuted 3,000 so far. The question isn’t “how many have been arrested” – it’s “how many have been arrested so far.” And that number is growing faster now than at any point since the program began.

That’s the reality behind the PPP fraud arrest statistics. At Spodek Law Group, Todd Spodek and our federal defense team track these numbers daily. We watch the indictments, the convictions, the sentences. What we see isn’t a program winding down – it’s a program ramping up. The queue is deep. The statute runs until 2030. The number you’re reading today will double before this is over.

The Number Youre Looking For (And What It Dosent Tell You)

Heres the complete picture from federal enforcement data. According to the IRS Criminal Investigation five-year report, the agency has launched 2,039 COVID fraud investigations totaling over $10 billion in attempted fraud. Of those, 1,028 people have been indicted. 569 have been sentenced, averaging 31 months in federal prison. The conviction rate? 97.4%.

But thats just IRS-CI. The Department of Justice tracks numbers across all federal agencies. There total as of December 31, 2024: 3,096 defendants charged with pandemic relief fraud. 2,532 found guilty. 2,143 sentenced. Of those sentenced, 81% recieved prison time. Sentances ranged from 1 day to 30 years, with the majority falling between 1 and 5 years.

OK so think about what those numbers mean. If 97% of charged defendants are convicted, and 81% of convicted defendants go to prison, then being charged with PPP fraud is essentialy a one-way ticket to federal custody. The “arrest” number and the “prison” number are basicly the same number with a time delay. Once your in the statistics, the outcome is almost predetermined.

669,000 Flagged, 3,096 Charged: The Math That Should Terrify You

Heres the number most people dont know. The SBA referred over 669,000 potentialy fraudulent PPP loans to the Office of Inspector General for investigation. Not after detailed human review. After automated data analytics. Nearly 700,000 loans flagged by algorithms that noticed discrepancies between what borrowers claimed and what federal databases showed.

Now do the math. 669,000 flagged. 3,096 charged. Thats 0.46%. Less then half of one percent of flagged loans have resulted in charges so far. The other 99.5% are still in the pipeline. Some are under investigation. Some are sealed under qui tam lawsuits. Some are waiting there turn in a queue that stretches years into the future. The 3,096 number isnt evidence of thorough enforcement – its evidence of how far the government has to go.

Think about what that means for you. If your loan was flagged – and you have no way of knowing wheather it was – your case might be one of the 665,000+ that hasnt reached prosecution yet. The question isnt wheather the government will eventualy get to you. Its when. The clock runs until 2030 for first-draw loans and 2031 for second-draw loans. Thats plenty of time to work through the queue.

The arrest number represents where they are in line, not where the line ends.

97% Conviction Rate: Arrest Equals Conviction

Heres something most people dont understand about the arrest statistics. A 97% conviction rate means the “arrested” number and the “convicted” number are essentialy the same. If 3,096 people have been charged, approximately 3,003 of them will be convicted. The 3% who beat the charges are statistical noise.

Why is the rate so high? Becuase the government dosent charge cases it cant win. By the time your arrested for PPP fraud, the investigation has been running for months or years. The evidence is already collected. Your bank records have been subpoenaed. Your tax returns have been compared to your PPP application. The discrepancies that flagged your loan have been documented. The case is built before you ever know about it.

What this means practically: if your searching for arrest statistics hoping to learn that people beat PPP fraud charges, your going to be disapointed. The statistics show overwhelmingly that they dont. Almost everyone who gets charged gets convicted. Almost everyone who gets convicted goes to prison. The arrest number is a preview of the prison number, not a separate category.

The Queue Theory: Why Smaller Amounts Come Later

Heres something the arrest statistics reveal if you look closley. The government prioritizes by dollar amount. The cases you see in the news – the $11 million fraudsters, the $9.6 million schemes, the multi-million dollar conspiracies – those are the ones getting prosecuted first. There clearing the big cases before moving to smaller amounts.

Think about it from the governments perspective. They have limited prosecutors. Limited courtroom time. Limited resources. If there going to spend those resources, they want maximum impact. A case involving $10 million in fraud makes headlines. It justifies the budget. It sends a message. A case involving $50,000 in fraud dosent make the same impact – but its still on the list.

OK so heres what that means for people who took smaller loans. Your not safe becuase you stole less. Your just further back in line. The arrest statistics from 2025 are mostly large-dollar cases. The arrest statistics from 2027 will include more medium-dollar cases. The arrest statistics from 2029 will include small-dollar cases. The queue is moving. Its just moving systematicaly from biggest to smallest.

Look at the named examples in recent prosecution announcements. Meelad Dezfooli got 15+ years for $11 million. A Texas couple got combined 32 years for $3.5 million. Carl Delano Torjagbo faces decades for $9.6 million. These arnt small operators. There the first wave. The second and third waves are still coming.

The Number Is Growing, Not Shrinking

Heres the uncomfortable truth about the arrest statistics. There accelerating. In March 2024, the DOJ had charged around 3,500 defendants. By the end of 2024, that number was 3,096 just for fraud-related charges in formally announced cases. The IRS-CI alone has 2,039 active investigations. New indictments come almost weekly now.

If your searching for arrest statistics hoping to see that enforcement is winding down, your reading the numbers wrong. The trend is up, not down. More cases are being filed now then were being filed in 2022. Sentences are 40% longer. Judges are less sympathetic. Prosecutors are more experienced. The enforcement machinery has gotten MORE efficent over time, not less.

Consider the recent activity. In February 2025, 21 individuals were indicted in Mitchell County, Georgia – all at once. In May 2025, 14 arrested in California for $25 million in fraud. In June 2025, the leader of a Missouri fraud scheme was sentenced to 51 months. In July 2025, Carl Torjagbo was convicted of $9.6 million in fraud. Every month brings new headlines. The arrest count keeps climbing.

The government has publically stated its goal: file every viable case before the statute of limitations expires. Not slow down. Not move on. File every case. The arrest statistics will keep growing until at least 2030.

31 Months Average: What Prison Time Looks Like Now

Heres what the sentancing statistics show. The average sentence for PPP fraud defendants is now 31 months in federal prison. Thats roughly 2.5 years. Not probation. Not home confinement. Actual federal prison time.

But thats just the average. The range is enormous. Some defendants get a year. Some get 30 years. Meelad Dezfooli got over 15 years. A Texas couple got combined 32 years. Rami Saab got 10 years plus $9.6 million in restitution. Terrence Pounds got 94 months plus $4.2 million in restitution. These arnt outliers – there examples of what happens when the fraud amount is substantial or the defendant fought the charges.

The trend is toward longer sentences. Defendants sentenced in 2024-2025 are recieving prison terms approximately 40% longer then defendants sentenced in 2021-2022 for identical conduct. Why? Judicial fatigue. Judges have seen hundreds of these cases. Every defendant has the same excuses. “I didnt understand the rules.” “My accountant prepared it.” “I thought I was eligable.” Judges arnt sympathetic anymore.

The era of probation for PPP fraud is essentialy over. In the early days, some defendants got lenient treatment. Now, prison time is the default. The statistics show 81% of sentenced defendants recieving incarceration. If you become one of the arrest statistics, you should expect to become one of the prison statistics.

Halfway Through the Clock

Heres the timeline that puts the arrest numbers in context. The CARES Act passed in March 2020. Most PPP loans were disbursed between April 2020 and May 2021. In 2022, Congress extended the statute of limitations for PPP fraud from 5 years to 10 years. That extension changed everything.

If you took a first-draw loan in April 2020, the government has until April 2030 to charge you. If you took a second-draw loan in May 2021, they have until May 2031. Its now late 2025. That means were roughly halfway through the enforcement window. The arrest statistics you see today represent aproximately half of the cases that will eventualy be filed.

Think about that math. If the government has charged 3,096 defendants in the first five years, and they have five more years to work through the queue, the final number could be 6,000 or more. Some estimates suggest even higher. With 669,000+ flagged loans and a stated goal of filing every viable case, the final count could be substantially higher then anything weve seen so far.

The arrest statistics your reading are a snapshot from the midpoint, not the finish line.

The Sealed Investigations You Cant See

Heres something the arrest statistics dont include. Qui tam lawsuits. These are whistleblower cases filed under seal – meaning there secret from the defendants while the government investigates. A former employee, a disgruntled partner, an ex-spouse with knowledge of your finances – any of them can file a qui tam complaint. And you wont know about it for months or years while the case devlopes.

Think about who has inside knowledge of your business. Your former bookkeeper knows what your actual payroll was. Your former partner knows your real revenue. Your accountant knows the numbers on your PPP application. Under the False Claims Act, whistleblowers can recieve 15 to 30 percent of whatever the government recovers. Thats a substantial financial incentive to report fraud. And the cases proceed under seal, meaning there not counted in the arrest statistics until there unsealed.

OK so what does this mean for the numbers? The 3,096 charged defendants represents only cases that have become public. There are additional investigations proceeding quietly, additional qui tam lawsuits working there way through sealed proceedings, additional defendants who have no idea there being investigated. The true number of people under investigation is significantely higher then the arrest count suggests. You just cant see it yet.

The seal period can last 60 days. It routinley gets extended to months. Sometimes years. During that entire time, a lawsuit is working against you and you have no idea it exists. The first indication might be a subpoena for documents. It might be federal agents showing up at your business. By then the investigation has been running for months and the case is largely built.

800 Civil Cases Still Pending

The arrest statistics only show criminal cases. But theres another entire category of enforcement that dosent result in “arrest” but still destroys lives: civil cases. According to recent data, there are aproximately 800 pending civil matters related to PPP fraud. These arnt criminal prosecutions – there civil actions seeking recovery of fraudulent funds plus penaltys.

Heres the thing about civil cases. The burden of proof is lower. The government dosent need to prove fraud beyond a reasonable doubt – they just need to prove it by a preponderance of evidence. More likely then not. The same evidence that might not support a criminal conviction can easily support a civil judgment. And civil judgments come with massive financial consequences: treble damages under the False Claims Act, meaning three times the amount of fraud plus penaltys per false claim.

The DOJ has publically stated that civil enforcement is a priority alongside criminal prosecution. The Fraud Section has prosecuted over 200 defendants in more then 130 criminal cases and seized over $78 million in cash proceeds. But thats just the criminal side. The civil side is working through its own backlog. If your not arrested, you might still be sued. The outcome is different – no prison – but the financial devastation can be just as severe.

Think about what a civil judgment means. Treble damages on a $100,000 PPP loan is $300,000. Plus penaltys per false claim. Plus legal fees. Plus the reputational damage of being named in a civil fraud action. The arrest statistics dont capture any of this. Civil enforcement is a parallel track that adds hundreds more defendants to the total count of people facing consequences for PPP fraud.

What the Next Five Years of Arrests Will Look Like

Heres what the statistics predict about future enforcement. If the government has charged 3,096 defendants in the first five years, the next five years will likely produce similar or higher numbers. The queue of 669,000+ flagged loans isnt getting shorter – its getting worked through. Every month, more cases move from “investigation” to “prosecution.” Every quarter, more defendants join the statistics.

The enforcement pattern is becoming clear. Large-dollar cases first. Medium-dollar cases second. Small-dollar cases third. The arrest statistics from 2026 will include defendants who thought they were beneath notice. The arrest statistics from 2028 will include defendants who assumed the government had moved on. The arrest statistics from 2030 will include defendants who waited until the very end – and got caught anyway.

Think about the governments stated goal: file every viable case before the statute expires. Not most cases. Every case. That means the pace of prosecutions will likely increase as 2030 approaches. The final years of the enforcement window could see more arrests then the early years as prosecutors race to clear the backlog. The arrest number your reading today could double or triple before the statute expires.

The Only Number That Matters: Zero

Heres what the arrest statistics actualy mean for you. If your not in them, you want to stay that way. If your worried about your PPP application, if you know your numbers might not withstand scrutiny, if your watching the arrest count climb and wondering when your number comes up – the only statistic that matters is zero. Zero charges. Zero convictions. Zero prison time.

At Spodek Law Group, Todd Spodek and our team of federal defense attorneys understand what the numbers reveal. We’ve watched the arrest count grow from dozens to hundreds to thousands. We’ve seen the conviction rate hold steady at 97%. We’ve seen sentances get longer, judges get harsher, prosecutors get more aggressive. The statistics tell a clear story: enforcement is accelerating, not winding down.

Heres what we know from defending these cases. Early intervention matters enormosly. Clients who come to us before there name appears in the statistics have options that clients who wait dont have. There may be paths to voluntary disclosure. There may be ways to cooperate that reduce exposure. There may be defenses that need to be preserved before investigators make contact. The goal is to stay out of the statistics entirely – or to minimize the damage if you cant.

The reality is this. Somewhere in federal databases, there are files on 669,000+ flagged loans. The government is working through those files systematicaly. 3,096 defendants have been charged so far. Thousands more will be charged before the statute expires. The queue is deep. The clock runs until 2030. The question isnt wheather the arrest number will keep climbing. Its wheather your name will be part of it.

If your reading this becuase your worried, if the statistics make you nervous, if you see yourself somewhere in the queue of flagged loans – call us at 212-300-5196. The consultation is confidential. We can help you understand what the numbers mean for your situation and what options exist before you become a statistic yourself.

The arrest number isnt an answer. Its a warning. And the warning says: the government isnt done yet.

Every week the number grows. The question is wheather yours is next.