Former professional basketball player Lorenzo Gordon, 40, is now facing federal charges for allegedly falsifying applications for pandemic relief loans. This follows the sentencing of his ex-girlfriend, Brittish Williams, to four years in prison for fraud-related felonies last year. Ms. Williams, who pleaded guilty to five charges in May, was arrested last week for failing to report to federal prison in West Virginia on Jan. 3.
Mr. Gordon, originally from St. Louis and a basketball player at Illinois State, played professionally in France, Germany, Turkey, and Israel. Mr. Gordon is charged with three counts of wire fraud and one count of theft of government property. The indictment filed on Wednesday accuses him of providing false information on COVID-19 business relief applications regarding the duration of operating two businesses, their earnings, and his sole ownership of a janitorial company. Federal prosecutors claim Mr. Gordon unlawfully collected nearly $273,000.
Notably, Mr. Gordon’s ex-girlfriend, Ms. Williams, first gained public attention in 2014 when she appeared on the VH1 reality show “Basketball Wives” with Mr. Gordon. Despite their subsequent breakup, the couple shares a child together. In May 2023, Ms. Williams, 33, pleaded guilty to 15 felonies, including misusing Social Security numbers, making false statements to the IRS, and wire fraud. Ms. Williams allegedly used fake social security numbers to open bank accounts. She admitted to filing nine applications for Economic Injury Disaster Loans, intended to assist businesses grappling with challenges during the pandemic. EIDL loans differ from the PPP loans in that EIDL are not forgivable and have to be paid back with interest. These applications contained false information about her business income, payroll, and even her criminal history. Investigators uncovered that Ms. Williams employed the funds acquired from two of these applications, totaling $144,400, to support her personal lifestyle.
PPP Fraud
They are not the first celebrities or reality stars to face troubles related to pandemic-era loans. During the peak of the COVID-19 crisis, the federal government established the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to assist small businesses in maintaining financial stability. Despite its intended purpose of allocating up to $659 billion for job retention and related expenses, the program became a target for illicit activities.By March 2021, federal prosecutors had charged over 120 individuals with PPP fraud. Notably, public figures, including “Love and Hip Hop: Miami” star Diamond “Baby Blue” Smith, received convictions, being sentenced to 20 months in prison for a PPP scam in December.
One defendant, Mark Mason Jr., a former University of Maryland running back, faced independent charges but was also named as an “unindicted co-conspirator” in six other lawsuits, as per court documents obtained by the newspaper.
Among the indicted celebrities are actress Ion Overman (known for Desperate Housewives), music producer Carlos “Clos” Stephens (associated with hip-hop mogul Master P), and actor Dale Godboldo (featured in The People v. O.J. Simpson).
Prosecutors allege that the defendants collaborated with Mr. Mason to submit fabricated versions of past IRS Form 941, the Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return, containing false payroll figures to an approved PPP lender. Notably, these submitted documents were never actually filed with the IRS. Mr. Mason, accused of submitting fraudulent PPP loan applications for two of his businesses, purportedly received a “success fee” ranging from 2-5 percent for loans approved from the applications he assisted others in submitting.
