A Lawrence man, Randolph Dominguez, 57, has been charged with wire fraud and theft of government money by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts. According to prosecutors, Dominguez fraudulently obtained COVID-19 relief funds and stole Social Security benefits over a period of time.
In June 2020, Dominguez allegedly submitted a false loan application to the Small Business Administration’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program, claiming his business, Dominguez SP Interpreters, earned $600,000 in gross revenue in 2019, when in reality it had only earned $16,989. Based on this fraudulent claim, he received a $74,900 loan in July 2020, which he is accused of using for non-business expenses.
Further investigations revealed that Dominguez also stole approximately $163,642 in Social Security benefits between April 2001 and June 2022.
If convicted, Dominguez faces up to 20 years in prison for wire fraud and up to 10 years for theft of government money, in addition to fines and supervised release. His sentencing will be determined by a federal district court judge.