NEWARK, NJ — A dual New York and Florida resident was charged for his role in fraudulently obtaining federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans totaling $3.8 million, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig and Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Department's Criminal Division announced today.
Gregory J. Blotnick, of New York City and West Palm Beach, Florida, is charged by complaint with eight counts of wire fraud affecting a financial institution and six counts of money laundering. Blotnick is scheduled to have his initial appearance by videoconference on May 20, 2021, before a U.S. Magistrate Judge.
"The funds made available through the Paycheck Protection Program are intended to help businesses and their workers get through the financial hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, not to enrich the unscrupulous few who, like this defendant, lie to obtain those funds for their own personal profit," Acting U.S. Attorney Honig said. "We will continue to protect the viability of important federal programs like these by working quickly to identify, investigate, and prosecute the individuals who see a time of national crisis as an opportunity to commit fraud."