SHELTON – A city resident pled guilty in federal court to defrauding banks out of more than $1.8 million through a pandemic-era loan program.
Robert Cocca, 37, pled guilty July 1 to one count of wire fraud and one count of engaging in a monetary transaction derived from unlawful activity. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut announced the plea in a press release Sept. 16.
According to court documents and business records, Cocca was the principal of three companies – The Candleman LLC, Durakote Finishing Systems LLC and Complete Property Management LLC – when the COVID-19 pandemic broke out in early 2020. When Congress created a loan program that year to help businesses weather the pandemic’s impact, Cocca applied for business loans using fraudulent information.
In Cocca’s applications, he gave wrong information regarding the yearly income of his businesses and the number of employees. He also included fabricated documents in the applications, according to the plea agreement.
In one example cited in court documents, Cocca said Durakote Finishing Systems LLC had made about $344,518 between 2019 and 2020. In reality, the company was not operating so it had no income.
Between March 2020 and April 2021, Cocca received a total of about $1,813,374 in fraudulent PPP loans, according to the plea agreement.
Cocca waived his right to be indicted and pled guilty in his initial court appearance July 1, according to court records.
Under the agreement, he could face between 37 and 57 months in prison. He was also ordered to pay back the more than $1.8 million.
He is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 12.