Alihea Jones, 51, of Brandon, Florida, was sentenced to 10 months in prison on Monday for her role in defrauding a Massachusetts housing agency, the Small Business Administration (SBA), and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts confirmed the sentencing.
Jones, who worked remotely for the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development in 2022, had access to sensitive program files. After her termination, she unlawfully redirected housing assistance payments from four program participants into unauthorized accounts in Georgia. She transferred these funds to her business, Beauty Concepts by Alihea LLC, her personal account, and accounts belonging to two associates who later paid her kickbacks.
In addition, Jones fraudulently obtained a $187,000 PPP loan from a Massachusetts lender in 2021, falsely claiming that her business employed 17 people with a $74,800 monthly payroll. The SBA approved and later forgave the loan, unaware of the false claims.
Jones caused a total loss of $222,074, with $33,225 owed to the housing department and $188,849 owed to the SBA. She spent most of the stolen money on personal expenses, including clothing and dining.
Jones pleaded guilty in September 2024 to five counts of wire fraud and was ordered to pay full restitution of $222,074 and forfeit the same amount.
