Former Broward deputy sheriff sentenced to federal prison for PPP loan fraud

A former Broward County sheriff's deputy, Stephanie Diane Smith, was sentenced last week to 7 months in prison for participating in a COVID-19 relief fraud scheme in which she received two loans from the Program Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

In March 2024, a federal jury in Fort Lauderdale found Smith guilty of two counts of wire fraud in connection with the scheme.

In 2021, the 54-year-old law enforcement officer from Sunrise, Florida, applied for and received two PPP loans as a sole proprietor for Children 1st Basketball Training and Agape Smith Vending. She used materially false information about each company's 2019 gross income and submitted falsified IRS tax forms with each application.

Smith also requested and was granted forgiveness of the two fraudulently obtained PPP loans, which totaled more than $31,000 in principal and interest. During the period of the program, Smith was employed as a deputy sheriff in the BSO Law Enforcement Department.

U.S. District Judge James I. Cohn imposed the sentence following a hearing. The sentence includes a period of 3 years of supervised release after imprisonment, restitution in the amount of $31,108, a fine of $2,000, and forfeiture.

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Other Broward officers accused of fraud

Smith was among more than a dozen Broward Sheriff's Office (BSO) employees who were charged last year with fraudulently obtaining Paycheck Protection Program loans.

At a news conference Thursday with Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony in October, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Markenzy Lapointe said a total of 17 employees, all “sworn BSO deputies,” had been accused of fraud.

The employees collectively received approximately $500,000, which they diverted for their personal use.

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For his part, the Broward sheriff said he was disappointed by the officers.

“I hate to see that, knowing some of the people and seeing the names on that list as being indicted, some of them were good officers,” Tony said. “But your worth depends on the last act and last conduct that you perform, and so if you're going to participate in criminal activity, we don't want you in this profession.”

The investigation dated back to 2021. The sheriff said he also directed the office's anti-corruption unit to investigate all 5,500 BSO employees “to make sure we left no stone unturned.”

The sheriff said the office had worked too hard to allow “one or two individuals” to destroy the public trust the office had built within the community.

He also urged BSO employees to continue to report cases of crimes and wrongdoing within the organization to protect BSO's reputation and values. “If you see something, I expect you to say something… if there is any other type of corruption or misconduct by a colleague within this place,” he said. he declares.

Learn more: More than a dozen BSO employees charged with PPP loan fraud