Joseph McKeon, 54, the owner of B & T Builders LLC, pleaded guilty today to charges of wire fraud and money laundering in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain a $900,000 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey.
From February 2021 to February 2022, McKeon submitted fraudulent PPP loan and loan forgiveness applications, falsely claiming that B & T Builders employed 60 individuals with an average monthly payroll of $360,000. To back up his loan application, McKeon fabricated payroll documents, bank statements, and tax returns.
After receiving the $900,000 PPP loan, McKeon withdrew a significant portion of the funds in cash and transferred $315,504 to a title company in Indiana. He later submitted a loan forgiveness application, falsely stating that the funds were used for payroll and other eligible expenses. However, McKeon spent the money on personal expenses and financial transactions unrelated to the operations of B & T Builders.
Prosecutors also highlighted that McKeon used various methods to conceal the source of the funds, including making multiple transfers between accounts he controlled, moving money from B & T Builders’ account to personal accounts and accounts under other entities he owned.
McKeon is scheduled to be sentenced on April 1, 2025, before U.S. District Judge Julien Xavier Neals in Newark federal court.
