BROOKLYN, NY — A former New York City Police Department detective from Long Island has pleaded guilty in federal court to orchestrating a Paycheck Protection Program fraud scheme that spanned more than two years and involved dozens of fraudulent loan applications.
John Bolden, 47, of Valley Stream, admitted Wednesday to wire fraud conspiracy in connection with the scheme. Bolden was serving as a detective with the New York City Police Department at the time of the offenses.
Federal prosecutors said Bolden and co-defendant Anthony Carreira, 43, of Staten Island, who also served as an NYPD detective, held partnership interests in a tax preparation franchise. Between May 2020 and October 2022, authorities said Bolden worked with clients to fraudulently obtain Paycheck Protection Program loans from the Small Business Administration.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, Bolden sought to obtain and, in many cases, successfully secured PPP funds for himself, his co-defendants and more than 65 individuals by submitting online loan applications containing materially false information.
Prosecutors said Bolden prepared fictitious IRS Schedule C forms that falsely reported applicants’ employment, gross income and net income in order to qualify for federal funds created under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act in 2020.
A third defendant, Christian McKenzie, 48, of Wheatley Heights, also previously pleaded guilty after allegedly obtaining a fraudulent PPP loan and referring other applicants to Bolden in exchange for a share of the proceeds.
When sentenced, each defendant faces up to 30 years in prison.
The case was investigated by the FBI’s New York Field Office, along with several federal oversight agencies and local law enforcement partners.
