On December 20, 2023, in the Western District of Kentucky, Darlene McCoy pled guilty to four counts of wire fraud, one count of bank fraud, and two counts of money laundering.  

In July 2020, McCoy utilized Legal Zoom to form her business, named Letz Get It Crackin’, which included obtaining an Employer Identification Number from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). McCoy electronically filed an application for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan for Letz Get It Crackin’ that contained materially false and misleading statements. In the application, McCoy falsely claimed that Letz Get It Crackin’ had nine employees and monthly payroll expenses. McCoy included IRS forms for all four quarters of Tax Year (TY) 2019, for the first quarter of TY 2020, and a TY 2019 document, which stated the entity had gross receipts and income taxes. McCoy further falsely stated that the funds would be used for payroll, lease/mortgage interest, and utilities.

In August 2020, the financial institution approved the loan application for $113,750 and distributed the funds into a bank account in the name of Letz Get It Crackin’. Almost immediately, McCoy began using the PPP funds for her own personal use, both directly out of the Letz Get It Crackin’ bank account and through other accounts that she controlled to which she transferred the funds.  

Source: The facts in this case narrative come from the following publicly available documents: W.D. Ky. Plea Agr. filed December 20, 2023; and W.D. Ky., Indict. filed July 11, 2023