Bozeman woman sentenced to prison for bank fraud and money laundering

MISSOULA - A Bozeman woman who obtained federal COVID relief funds through fraud was sentenced yesterday to 30 months in prison to be followed by 5 years of supervised release, Acting U.S. Attorney Tim Racicot said.

Alaina Marie Garcia, 41, pleaded guilty in January 2026 to one count of bank fraud and one count of money laundering.

U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen presided.

The government alleged in court documents that on May 5, 2020, Garcia, as an authorized representative of Bluebird Property Rentals LLC, an entity she controlled, applied for and was approved for a Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loan through Celtic Bank in the amount of $613,000. In the PPP application, Garcia falsely stated Bluebird Property Rentals LLC had paid payroll taxes and had 32 employees with an average monthly payroll expense of $245,533. None of these statements were true.

In reality, Garcia and Bluebird Property Rentals LLC had no employees and had never paid payroll taxes. Both of these fraudulent statements were material as they affected Garcia's eligibility to receive the loan and the amount she received. Without these fraudulent statements, the loan would not have been issued.

In the loan application, Garcia also agreed the funds "will be used to retain workers and maintain payroll or make mortgage interest payments, lease payments, and utility payments, as specified under the Paycheck Protection Program Rule." Instead, Garcia spent the funds on personal expenses for her private benefit. Most of the funds were used to purchase a large piece of property in the Bozeman area. On May 11, 2020, Garcia transferred $548,000 of the loan proceeds to Axilon Law Group as a part of this real estate transaction.

On July 25, 2020, Garcia applied for and was granted forgiveness of the loan. To obtain forgiveness, Garcia falsely claimed to have used the funds for qualified expenses including payroll and business mortgage interest payments. None of these statements were true.

"While business owners and families were struggling during the COVID pandemic, Garcia was scheming to defraud the Paycheck Protection Program for personal gain," said Amanda Prestegard, Special Agent in Charge of IRS-CI's Denver Field Office. "IRS-CI has dedicated significant resources to investigating and uncovering COVID-relief fraud and holding those who stole from these programs accountable continues to be a top priority."

Assistant U.S. Attorney Colin Rubich prosecuted the case. The Internal Revenue Service and Small Business Administration conducted the investigation.

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