Fort Lauderdale, FL — Conrad Brandon Bernard, 24, has pleaded guilty to bank fraud and identity theft for his role in a scheme that fraudulently obtained over $1 million in COVID-19 relief loans and unemployment compensation payments, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.
From May 2020 to December 2022, Bernard applied for 14 Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) using the personal identifying information (PII) of others without their knowledge or consent. Once the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) approved the fraudulent loan applications, the funds were deposited into bank accounts controlled by Bernard. He then transferred the money into other accounts he controlled, including those created with the stolen identities of additional victims.
In addition to the EIDL fraud, Bernard used stolen PII to apply for and collect unemployment benefits in several states, including West Virginia and Arizona, without the knowledge or consent of the individuals whose identities were used.
Fraudulent Gains and Stolen Identities
In total, Bernard fraudulently obtained $1,083,340 from EIDL loans and unemployment benefits. During the investigation, authorities discovered that Bernard had possession of counterfeit passport cards, false Florida driver’s licenses, and equipment to produce fraudulent identification documents. They also uncovered a cache of PII for thousands of individuals, including names, birthdates, and Social Security numbers.
Bernard is scheduled to be sentenced on February 5, 2025, before U.S. District Judge William P. Dimitrouleas in Fort Lauderdale. He faces up to 30 years in prison for the bank fraud charges, with an additional mandatory 2-year consecutive prison sentence for the aggravated identity theft conviction.