Manassas Businessman Agrees To Pay $1M In Pandemic Fraud Case

MANASSAS, VA — A Manassas businessman has agreed to pay $1 million to settle allegations that he falsified payroll amounts to obtain larger loans through a federal pandemic relief program.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Steven T. Covey obtained two loans through the Small Business Administration's Paycheck Protection Program for his business, True Information Assurance. Prosecutors said he received inflated loans by using false payroll numbers.

After selling the company in 2021, prosecutors said Covey retained all proceeds from both PPP loans.

The settlement came after federal prosecutors filed a lawsuit against the company under the whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act. The whistleblower will receive a share of the settlement.

The case was investigated by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gina Kim and Auditor Peter Melaragni for the Eastern District of Virginia.