A federal grand jury indicted Republican Florida state Rep. Joe Harding on multiple counts after authorities said he illegally obtained $150,000 in pandemic-related small business loans by allegedly using the names of dormant companies.
. Both companies had not been active in Florida from between May 2017 to December 2020.
Harding told the SBA that The Vak Shack had $420,874 in revenue for the 12 months prior to Jan. 31, 2020, and four employees, while Harding Farms had $392,000 in revenue and two employees.“I want the public and my constituents to know that I fully repaid the loan and cooperated with investigators as requested.”
He is charged with two counts of wire fraud, two counts of engaging in monetary transactions because he transferred the loan money to two separate bank accounts and two counts of making false statements to the SBA. He faces a maximum of 35 years in prison. Shortly after the indictment was unsealed, Florida House Speaker Paul Renner removed Harding from his committee assignments, which included a spot on the House Judiciary Committee.
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