Federal prosecutions for fraud related to COVID-19 are still catching up to defendants, with the Department of Justice reporting a Castaic man has recently pleaded guilty to reporting false information on more than 1,000 federal income tax returns to get substantial refunds for his clients.
The false filings from 71-year-old Kerwin Aldric Jordan represented tens of millions in losses to the U.S. Treasury Department, in addition to the COVID-19 business-relief loan applications to obtain money he used for unauthorized purposes, according to the DOJ.
Jordan pleaded guilty to four counts of aiding in the preparation of false federal income tax returns and one count of wire fraud.
According to his plea agreement, Jordan filed more than 1,370 federal tax returns in a five-year period, from 2018 to 2023, which, according to the DOJ, represented more than $73 million in business losses and more than $25 million in lost tax revenue.
Federal prosecutors said Jordan created false businesses and losses for his clients, in an effort to reduce their taxable income.
“For example, Jordan reduced a married couple’s $2 million income with fraudulent expenses of more than $1 million for non-existent businesses, eliminating additional taxes the couple would have owed and generating a tax refund of almost $25,000,” according to the DOJ’s statement. “The couple paid Jordan nearly $28,000 for the preparation of their return.”
Jordan also wrote a book, “LifeStyles of the Very Rich In Faith,” and ran a church, Lifestyles of the Rich in Faith Church, a nonprofit organization of which he was the principal and, according to the DOJ, was a part of his extensive COVID-loan fraud.
“Jordan also lied on loan applications for Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loans, two programs Congress created in March 2020 to help businesses weather the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” according to the DOJ news release. “Jordan applied for PPP loans for his companies and received a total of $188,667. He also applied for EIDL loans for Jordan and Jordan; Euphrates Wealth Asset Management, of which he was the owner. To obtain these loans, Jordan falsely reported that the companies had employees when, in fact, they had none.”
U.S. District Judge Stephen V. Wilson scheduled an Oct. 5 sentencing hearing, at which time Jordan will face a statutory maximum sentence of 32 years in federal prison.
