Florida Man Charged With Fraud After Allegedly Using PPP Loans To Buy A Boat

A Florida business owner was formally charged with fraud by the Department of Justice for alleged abuses of the Paycheck Protection Program, including buying a boat using loan funds.

Casey David Crowther, 35, who operates Target Roofing & Sheet Metal, Inc., out of Fort Myers, Florida, was charged with making a false statement to a lending institution and faces a maximum of 30 years in federal prison.

“According to the complaint, Crowther sought and received more than $2 million in a Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loan through an application to an insured financial institution on behalf of his company, Target Roofing & Sheet Metal, Inc.,” the Department of Justice said in a press release. “Crowther submitted a loan application that included false and misleading statements concerning what the PPP funds would be used for, specifically that the PPP funds would only be used for business-related purposes, to retain workers, and maintain payroll or make mortgage payments, lease payments, and utilities payments.”

Crowther allegedly split the $2 million he received between several personal and business-related accounts, along with the one notable purchase.

The Department of Justice said Crowther used $689,417 to purchase a 40-foot catamaran boat registered under his name. Around $126,000 went to one of his company’s checking accounts, another $100,000 was wired to the account of a former company stakeholder, $3,300 went into a joint account he holds with his wife, and $1,179,963 went into a separate business account in May. The last account was closed shortly after so Crowther could obtain the full loan.

It’s the latest such case the Justice Department has addressed since the program was set up as part of the CARES Act in March. Another Florida man had used loan funds to buy a Lamborghini.