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A man has been jailed in Will County on charges of fraudulently obtaining a $20,832 loan from the Paycheck Protection Program and fraudulently obtaining $2,388 in unemployment benefits.
About 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sonjre Childs, 30, was booked into the Will County jail on several felony charges filed last year that include theft by deception, theft, loan fraud, wire fraud and state benefits fraud. Jail and court records list Childs having addresses in Joliet and Olympia Fields.
An indictment, filed Sept. 1 accused Childs of fraudulently obtaining a $20,832 PPP loan after he submitted a loan application that falsely claimed his sole properties business had gross revenues of $104,500.
The Paycheck Protection Program was established to help struggling businesses make payroll during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
The indictment further alleged Childs obtained the $20,832 PPP loan while he had an open felony case that was filed against him in 2020. In that case, Childs is charged with unlawful use of a Glock .45-caliber pistol that was loaded with 12 rounds. The case remains pending in court.
The indictment alleged Childs received $2,388 in an unemployment benefits at a time in April 2021, when he received the proceeds of his $20,832 PPP loan. Childs was accused of being ineligible to receive unemployment benefits because of the PPP loan.
The investigation that led to the charges against Childs was conducted by the Joliet Police Department.
Last year, the police department held a press conference about the investigation that is called Operation Triple P.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Inspector General Office and Will County State’s Attorney Office also have worked on the investigation.
“During the course of this investigation, it was discovered that some of the targets being investigated today were in custody and using jail phones to complete the fraudulent PPP loan process,” Joliet Police Chief William Evans said at the news conference.