Five people already convicted in high-profile COVID-related fraud case involving Jamaican woman

Five people have already been convicted in the sprawling fraud case involving Elaine Escoe, the Jamaican woman who was deported to the United States (US) on Saturday to stand trial for her alleged involvement in a US$32 million COVID-related fraudulent scheme, American authorities have disclosed.

They are currently serving sentences ranging from 19 years to three years in prison, the US Department of Justice said in a statement on Monday.

Escoe is the last remaining defendant charged in the case.

Alfred Davis, Cher Davis and Latoya Clarke were found guilty by a federal jury last December for their roles in the scheme, the US DOJ disclosed.

Alfred Davis was sentenced to 19 and five months in prison; Cher Davis was given a seven-year prison sentence; while Clarke was ordered to serve five years and eight months, according to the DOJ statement.

Gino Jourdan and James McGhow previously pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 46 months and 42 months in prison, respectively.

The DOJ also disclosed more details about the alleged fraud.

Citing court documents, the DOJ claimed that Escoe and her co-conspirators submitted or caused the submission of fraudulent applications for more than $32 million in federal funds through the Paycheck Protection Programme, Restaurant Revitalization Fund, Shuttered Venue Operators Grant and Economic Injury Disaster Loan.

The programmes were created to provide a lifeline for businesses that were adversely impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The applications falsely represented the existence, payroll, revenue, and operations of purported businesses to qualify for and maximise federal relief funding, US authorities claimed.

To support the fraudulent applications, the conspirators created fake tax documents, fabricated bank records and other false financial records that lenders and programme administrators relied upon in approving the loans and grants, the DOJ statement alleged.

It’s also alleged that some applications were submitted on behalf of businesses controlled by the conspirators, while others were submitted for third parties in exchange for substantial kickbacks, as much as 50 per cent of the loan proceeds in some cases.

The fraud proceeds were laundered among the conspirators, the DOJ said.

“Elaine Escoe allegedly helped [to] orchestrate a sprawling scheme that fraudulently obtained more than $32 million from program created to keep American businesses and workers afloat during the pandemic,” said Jason Reding Quiñones, US Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

Escoe, 41, was charged by indictment in 2025 with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and multiple counts of wire fraud and money laundering.

After a federal arrest warrant was issued for her in May 2025, she failed to appear for her court appearance and fled to Jamaica.

It is unclear when and where in Jamaica she was apprehended, but US law enforcement authorities say she was arrested based on a tip and information developed by the US Federal Bureau of Investigations.

- Livern Barrett

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