Mount Vernon officials announced late Friday afternoon that they had completed their investigation into a possible pandemic loan program among city workers without reaching any conclusions.
They revealed that 17 city workers had received grants or loans, including 10 firefighters, 5 water department employees, one public works employee and one civilian police department employee.
“It is up to the federal government to decide whether these loans or grants were obtained legally,” said a city press release.
PROBE: The mayor instructs staff to report pandemic loans
It turned out that the 17 weren’t necessarily the only employees getting loans – just that they were the only ones reporting to city officials.
This was an obvious response to Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard’s October 20 instruction that supervisors must be notified when an employee received a COVID-19 payment, as part of the “process” of getting alleged ringleaders an application fee from the Paying federal loans or granting money they received.
The money was believed to have come from Small Business Administration funds under the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program or the $ 600 billion payroll protection program created under the CARES Act.
An investigation into the loans received from Mount Vernon employees is believed to be conducted through a federal investigation. Those who received the loans had to have their own businesses that were hit by the coronavirus pandemic. It was unclear how many, if any, of the 17 employees had such businesses.
The press release did not say anything about whether employees paid filing fees to other city workers or to those associated with them.
The city was said to be cooperating with the FBI and suggested providing the FBI with information from staff that were “transparent and cooperated with our internal investigation.”
Twitter: @ Jonbandler
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