Robeson County Woman Stole $150,000 In Phony Covid Loan Pleads Guilty

NEW BERN, N.C. – A Robeson County woman involved in a scheme to defraud the Small Business Administration’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) by submitting a false loan application to steal $150,000 pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Pamela Humphrey, 44, a Fayetteville Tech Community College Professor, faces a maximum term of 30 years in prison, a $1 million fine and to repay a Forfeiture Money Judgment of $150,000 when sentenced later this year.

“While the government stopped doling out billions in easy Covid loans, this office remains vigilant to hold fraudsters accountable,” said U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle. “Any person who steals taxpayers’ dollars can expect us to find them, investigate them, and convict them. Then they will pay it back while in prison. Cheaters. Never. Win.”

Humphrey submitted a fraudulent EIDL loan application for a business located in Robeson County. Humphrey made false representations including the number of employees and the gross revenue of her business in order to obtain the government COVID loan. Following approval of the loan application, the SBA disbursed the funds into a personal account controlled by Humphrey.

W. Ellis Boyle, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Jones accepted the guilty plea from the Defendant. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) investigated the case.