Chicago’s inspector general concluded nine investigations in the first quarter, finding that Chicago police officers fraudulently obtained forgivable loans under the COVID-era Paycheck Protection Program, investigators announced.
A tenth city worker, identified as an aldermanic employee, also obtained a fraudulent PPP loan and then filed a false police report claiming someone had stolen their identity and used it to submit the loan application, according to the OIG’s first-quarter report. The report does not identify the targets of OIG’s investigations by name.
In one CPD case, the investigators determined that an officer lied to fraudulently obtain two PPP loans totaling $41,666 before joining the department, then submitted false filings to secure loan forgiveness. The officer lied about the matter again during the CPD application process, failed to appear for a scheduled interview with OIG investigators, and ultimately resigned while under inquiry. CPD agreed with OIG’s recommendation to add the officer to the city’s do-not-hire list, the quarterly report stated.
The report also said CPD had “preliminarily” agreed that eight other officers should be discharged and placed on the city’s do-not-hire list for PPP loan fraud.
One fraudulently applied for and received forgiveness of two federal PPP loans totalling $41,666. Another applied for two federal PPP loans totaling $41,142, along with an Economic Injury Disaster Loan of $10,000. Three officers received $20,833 each through separate and unrelated PPP loan applications. Another received $37,154 in PPP loans, another received $20,000, and one received $40,000 through a PPP loan submitted while they were a city employee, but before joining CPD, according to OIG.
In the aldermanic employee case, the OIG said the staffer lied on PPP loan and loan forgiveness applications to illegally obtain $20,833 and avoid repayment. During the investigation, OIG learned the employee filed a false police report alleging identity theft, submitted a false report to the U.S. Small Business Administration making the same claim, and lied to OIG investigators about their role in applying for the loan and seeking forgiveness.
OIG recommended that the alderman who supervises the worker fire the employee and add them to the do-not-hire list, but the alderman failed to respond by the deadline. The alderman later acknowledged receiving OIG’s recommendations but did not indicate whether they agreed or what action would be taken, the quarterly report said. Instead, the alderman wrote that they “take the matters outlined in your report seriously and recognize the importance of maintaining the highest standards of integrity, accountability, and professionalism in all areas of service,” adding that “appropriate steps are being taken to ensure compliance with all applicable policies and expectations moving forward.”
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