US man sentenced to prison for buying luxury auto with Covid funds

Robert Besser
04 Dec 2021, 22:51 GMT+10

Lee Price III from Texas was sentenced to over nine years in prison after fraudulently obtaining COVID-19 relief funds for his business, which he used to buy a Lamborghini Urus luxury automobile
In September, Price, 30, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering charges, after receiving PPP payroll loan funds worth $1.6 million by falsifying his applications
Price used some of the money to also buy a Ford F-350 truck and a Rolex watch

HOUSTON, Texas: On Monday, a Texas man, Lee Price III, was sentenced to over nine years in prison after fraudulently obtaining COVID-19 relief funds for his business, which he used to buy a Lamborghini Urus luxury automobile.

In September, Price, 30, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering charges, after receiving PPP payroll loan funds worth $1.6 million by falsifying his applications, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said, citing court documents.

According to the documents, Price used the name of a person who died before the documents were submitted, as well as falsified payroll expenses and the number of staff he purportedly employed at three separate businesses.

Price used some of the money to also buy a Ford F-350 truck and a Rolex watch, the DOJ said, adding authorities have recovered over $700,000 of the fraudulently obtained money.

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