Olive Branch Woman Sentenced to Federal Prison for Defrauding Covid-19 Relief Program of Over $5,000,000

Memphis, TN - Lisa Evans, 43, of Olive Branch, Mississippi, has been sentenced to federal prison for defrauding the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a federal program intended to help small businesses and their employees survive the COVID-19 pandemic, out of over $5,000,000. Joseph C. Murphy, Jr., Interim United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the sentence today.

According to information presented in court, Evans submitted fraudulent PPP loan applications for numerous individuals who were not entitled to PPP loans. The applications Evans submitted contained false representations, including fake federal tax documents. When the individual borrowers obtained the PPP loan funds, they then paid Evans kickbacks of 20 to 30%. The loss to the PPP program was $5,126,258.

Evans was sentenced on September 11, 2025, by United States District Judge Thomas L. Parker to 18 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Evans was also ordered to pay $4,400,723 in restitution to the U.S. Small Business Administration.

The case was investigated by the Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General, the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Secret Service, Memphis Field Office.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tony R. Arvin.

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