IRS and SBA Employee Allegedly Ran Pandemic Fraud Ring Right Out in the Open on Instagram
•January 15, 2026
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Why It Matters
The case exposes how insider access and social‑media recruitment can bypass weak controls in emergency aid programs, prompting calls for tighter oversight and verification.
Key Takeaways
- •Former SBA, IRS employee exploited insider roles for fraud
- •Instagram used to recruit accomplices, offering referral fees
- •Fraud targeted EIDL, PPP, EIDL Advance, and ERTC programs
- •Alleged losses exceed $3.5 million across four relief schemes
- •Case underscores need for stronger verification in pandemic aid
Pulse Analysis
The pandemic relief landscape was built on speed, delivering billions of dollars through programs like the Economic Injury Disaster Loan, Paycheck Protection Program, and the Employee Retention Tax Credit. While the urgency helped countless businesses survive, it also created gaps in verification, allowing individuals with privileged access to manipulate applications. Insider fraud is not new, but the scale of pandemic aid amplified the risk, making robust internal controls a critical safeguard for taxpayer funds.
Williams' operation leveraged her dual roles at the SBA and the IRS to orchestrate a multi‑program fraud ring. By posting recruitment ads on Instagram, she attracted a network of participants who submitted bogus applications for nonexistent or ineligible businesses. In exchange for a share of the proceeds, she offered referral bonuses, effectively turning the social platform into a funnel for illicit funds. The alleged $3.5 million loss spanned three years and involved falsified loan requests, advance grants, and tax‑credit claims, illustrating how a single insider can exploit multiple agencies when oversight is fragmented.
The prosecution sends a clear signal to both government agencies and private actors: reliance on social media for recruitment and the absence of cross‑agency data checks are unacceptable vulnerabilities. Agencies are now reviewing authentication protocols, enhancing data‑sharing mechanisms, and tightening audit trails for relief disbursements. For businesses, the case underscores the importance of due diligence when engaging consultants or third‑party services for government programs, as reputational and financial risks rise when fraud schemes intersect with digital recruitment channels.
IRS and SBA Employee Allegedly Ran Pandemic Fraud Ring Right Out in the Open on Instagram
On Monday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office put out a press release announcing charges against one Attallah Williams, 32, who is accused of using jobs at both the SBA and IRS to run a multi-year, multi-program emergency Covid relief fraud scheme. Williams allegedly approved “fraudulent applications in exchange for bribes and kickbacks” and recruited participants through Instagram who would then get referral payments of their own for recruiting more people (again, allegedly).
Details, as per the news release:
According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, and other information presented in court: Williams allegedly orchestrated a three-year scheme to fraudulently obtain funds from four separate emergency pandemic relief programs:
First, Williams submitted fraudulent applications to the SBA to obtain Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) in the names of businesses that were not operational.
Second, Williams submitted a fraudulent application for a Paycheck Protection Program loan, guaranteed by the SBA, for a business that was not operational.
Third, Williams obtained a position as a loan officer with the SBA, enabling her to use her insider access to wrongly approve applications to the EIDL Advance grant program. Williams then advertised on Instagram to recruit accomplices who, under her instructions, submitted fraudulent applications using the names of nonexistent or ineligible businesses. Williams, using her position at the SBA, improperly approved those applications in exchange for a share of the proceeds. Williams then encouraged her conspirators to recruit additional participants, promising them referral fees for every person brought into the scheme.
Fourth, Williams left the SBA and obtained a position as a tax examining technician at the IRS. Williams again advertised on social media to recruit accomplices who, under her instructions and with her assistance, submitted fraudulent tax documents to the IRS to claim payments under the Employee Retention Tax Credit program with Williams receiving a fee for each application.
In total, Williams submitted false claims for more than $3.5 million of pandemic emergency assistance funds intended to help struggling businesses.
Oh there it is: ERTC. You just knew it had to be in the mix. The press release doesn’t say how many payments make up that estimated $3.5 million in alleged fraud, only the total. Anyone find it strange that a single person was able to rubber stamp all these fraudulent applications? We know the programs lacked rigorous checks and balances (this is not alleged) but geez.
“Williams allegedly exploited her federal employment, stole millions of dollars from generous government programs, and brazenly recruited other participants through social media advertisements,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “This prosecution is yet another example of this office’s commitment to hold accountable those who abused their government positions or stole from pandemic relief programs.”
Williams got hit with a federal charge of conspiracy to defraud the government. Given how rampant Covid relief fraud was, we expect the government to throw not just the book but the entire library at her just to make an example of her. For now, she is innocent until proven guilty.
The post IRS and SBA Employee Allegedly Ran Pandemic Fraud Ring Right Out in the Open on Instagram appeared first on Going Concern.
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