Norfolk man sentenced to over three years in prison for laundering funds fraudulently obtained from a pandemic relief program

NORFOLK, Va. - A Norfolk man was sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison for money laundering and unlawful monetary transactions relating to the fraudulent receipt of funds from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

According to court records and evidence presented at trial, in May 2020, Brian Renard Manley Jr., 39, sent an email containing information about his businesses to an individual in Georgia who created fake tax returns for the business and submitted a fraudulent PPP application. PPP was administered by the Small Business Administration to provide low-interest financing to pay up to eight weeks of payroll costs for eligible small businesses experiencing substantial financial disruption due to the pandemic.

As a result of the fraudulent PPP application, Brian Manley received $350,000, which he immediately transferred into a newly opened bank account for a different company. The next day, he forwarded an email to the same individual in Georgia from his co-defendant spouse, Lacole Manley, which contained information and data about her business. Lacole Manley later received an additional $350,000 PPP loan after a fraudulent application was submitted in her name by the same individual in Georgia. The Manleys used the PPP funds to pay for various personal expenses, including travel to Orlando and Las Vegas as well as the purchase of a luxury vehicle.

Lacole Manley is expected to be sentenced on May 19.

The IRS Criminal Investigation Washington D.C. Field Office and the FBI's Norfolk Field Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony C. Mozzi and Clayton D. LaForge are prosecuting the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District CourtLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACERLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-56.