Laplace woman guilty of COVID-19 relief fraud

Date: May 29, 2026

Contact: [email protected]

New Orleans, LA - Tiffany Carter ("Carter") of LaPlace, Louisiana, pleaded guilty on May 19, 2026, before U.S. District Judge William J. Crain, to False Statements to the Small Business Administration (SBA), announced U.S. Attorney David I. Courcelle.

According to court documents, Carter made materially false statements and representations to the SBA, resulting in her obtaining fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) loans. The total loss to the SBA for the loans is $731,972.00.

At sentencing, Carter faces up to 5 years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000.00, a mandatory special assessment fee of $100.00, and supervised release for a period of up to three (3) years. Judge Crain set sentencing for Aug. 18, 2026.

U.S. Attorney Courcelle praised the work of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Kathryn McHugh of the Financial Crimes Unit is in charge of the prosecution.

On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. The core mission of the Fraud Division is to zealously investigate and prosecute those who steal or fraudulently misuse taxpayer dollars. Department of Justice efforts to combat fraud support President Trump's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

IRS-CI is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. It is the only federal law enforcement agency with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code. IRS-CI has 18 field offices located across the U.S. and maintains an international presence through attaché posts abroad.