Georgia Man Sentenced for $170,000 COVID Loan Fraud Scheme

A Georgia man has been sentenced to six months of home confinement in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain more than $170,000 in COVID-19 disaster relief loans for a trucking company that had ceased operating years earlier

Preston Fleming, 68, of Dacula, Georgia, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to six months of home confinement in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain more than $170,000 in COVID-19 disaster relief loans for a trucking company that had ceased operating years earlier.  

“Fleming lied about his company’s operations, lied about how the money would be used, and then lied again to have the loan forgiven, all so he could build himself a new home with pandemic relief funds meant to save struggling small businesses,” said U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. “My office will continue to hold accountable anyone who treated disaster relief programs as a personal piggy bank.” 

Fleming pleaded guilty on April 17, 2026, before U.S. District Judge Beryl A. Howell to one count of wire fraud. In addition to six months of home confinement, Judge Howell ordered Fleming to serve two years of supervised release and to pay the total remaining balance of fraudulently obtained funds. Prosecutors had requested a term of imprisonment.   

“Preston Fleming’s conduct reflects a blatant audacity to commit fraud. As a former HUD employee, he knew the responsibilities that come with public service, yet he chose to exploit a national emergency for personal gain,” according to HUD Office of Inspector General Special Agent in Charge Jerome Winkle.  “Applying for substantial COVID‑19 relief funds for a business he had already closed undermines the integrity of programs meant to support Americans in crisis. Our office remains steadfast in bringing accountability to those who abuse federal relief efforts.” 

According to court papers, between 2018 and 2019, Fleming co-owned Fleming Transport Services, Inc. (FTS), a Texas-based trucking company. FTS went out of business before the COVID-19 pandemic and was not an ongoing concern by January 2020. Despite that, between April 2020 and June 2021, Fleming submitted a series of false and fraudulent loan applications to the Small Business Administration in which he sought disaster relief funds through the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loan program. 

Preston Fleming, 68, of Ducula, Georgia was sentenced today to 6-months of home confinement in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain more than $170,000 in COVID-19 disaster relief loans for a trucking company that had ceased operating years earlier, announced…

— U.S. Attorney DC (@USAO_DC) September 18, 2026

Fleming falsely certified that FTS was operational as of January 2020 and that the loan proceeds would cover payroll and other eligible operating expenses. Based on the misrepresentations, the SBA and third-party lenders funded about $172,500 in loans. Rather than using the funds to support FTS, Fleming spent the loan proceeds on personal expenses. He bought land in Dacula, Georgia, and spent loan money to build a personal residence on that property. He also disbursed thousands of dollars in loan proceeds to a relative. 

In August 2021, Fleming applied for forgiveness of the company’s $12,994 Paycheck Protection Program loan. On the application, Fleming falsely certified that he had complied with all program requirements. Based on those fraudulent documents, the SBA forgave the loan in full, plus interest. 

The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of the Inspector General. The matter was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nickolas Reck and Trial Attorneys Alexandre Dempsey and Aaron Jennen of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section. 

On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs. 

The Department of Justice’s Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in federal districts across the country, has charged more than 6,200 defendants who collectively billed federal healthcare programs and private insurers more than $45 billion since 2007. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in healthcare fraud schemes. 

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