A woman charged in a $32 million coronavirus pandemic relief fraud scheme has been captured in Jamaica where she was hiding out and returned to the United States.
The suspect was identified as 41-year-old Elaine Angene Escoe who was among the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) most wanted alleged coronavirus fraud fugitives, Fox News reported Saturday.
Escoe arrived in Florida to face the charges against her that include conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and several substantive counts of wire fraud and money laundering, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida said in a news release.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said, “This Most Wanted Fraudster allegedly obtained tens of millions in COVID-19 relief, stealing critical resources from legitimate businesses during a national crisis. She fled the country believing she could escape justice but ultimately could not. Those who exploit taxpayer-funded programs will be held accountable by this Department of Justice, no matter how long it takes or where they attempt to hide.”
Once Escoe was indicted in 2025, a federal judge issued an arrest warrant when she did not show up for her court date. She allegedly fled to Jamaica and was captured when FBI officials were alerted to her whereabouts.
The attorney’s office continued:
According to court records, Escoe and her co-conspirators submitted or caused the submission of fraudulent applications seeking more than $32 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF), Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG), and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) funds. The applications falsely represented the existence, payroll, revenue, and operations of purported businesses to qualify for and maximize federal relief funding.
To support the fraudulent applications, the conspirators created fake tax documents, fabricated bank records, and other false financial records that lenders and program administrators relied upon in approving loans and grants. Some applications were submitted on behalf of businesses controlled by the conspirators, while others were submitted for third parties in exchange for substantial kickbacks — sometimes as much as 50% of the loan proceeds. The fraud proceeds were subsequently laundered among the conspirators.
Escoe is the final defendant charged in the scheme. The attorney’s office identified Alfred Davis, Cher Davis, and Latoya Clark who were convicted in the case, while two other individuals, James McGhow and Gino Jourdan, pleaded guilty.
FBI Director Kash Patel said Escoe used the fake name “Harley Newman” while she was in Jamaica.
The Chinese coronavirus pandemic created opportunity for fraud that has hurt American citizens.
In May, Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) said of the fraud “a lot of it came from COVID. A lot of it, we’re finding out, all across the country [is] from people who actually didn’t go to work, and they were not doing their jobs. And we’re finding out that they were very lax, especially through ’21 and ’24,” according to Breitbart News.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) also recently discussed fraud, saying that there was a question of “where have the government inspectors been for decades?” and that he believed there were no investigators to probe the issue.
He told Newsmax Host Greg Kelly “But it is a legitimate question, why has the federal government not sent inspectors into the states to look at this? It took Nick Shirley a period of days. We asked him, how did you find the ones? [He said] I looked up the spending, and I found the autism centers that had hundreds and hundreds of clients and they were the biggest one in Minnesota. So, I figured I’d just go see if the people with autism were showing up, and he got there and nobody was there. He went to adult learning centers or learing centers — they can’t even spell the word — and nobody was there. But this young man had the wherewithal to do it. And you’re right, the entire federal government didn’t do their job.”
In regard to Escoe’s case, Patel said “Led by President Trump, Vice President Vance, and the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud – the FBI and our partners continue to see an unprecedented level of success taking down the worst of the worst alleged fraudsters. In just week weeks, we have captured four subjects on three different continents charged with a combined nearly $1.8 billion in fraud, collectively on the run for over 3,500 days, each hiding overseas – now returned and all in custody in 1.5 months. Under this administration, fraud is no longer tolerated – and those who steal from American taxpayers have nowhere to hide.”
