Loretto Woman Indicted on Fraud Charges

A LAWRENCE COUNTY WOMAN SURRENDERED TO FBI AGENTS LATE LAST WEEK FOLLOWING A FEDERAL INDICTMENT. KIMBERLY HODGE, 51, OF LORETTO, WAS CHARGED WITH THREE COUNTS OF WIRE FRAUD AND ONE COUNT OF AGGRAVATED IDENTITIY THEFT, RELATED TO AN EMBEZZLEMENT SCHEME WHICH EXCEEDED 200,000 DOLLARS. ACCORDING TO THE INDICTMENT STATED THAT HODGE WAS THE BOOKKEEPER FOR INTEGRITY ARCHITECTUAL MILLWORK AND WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR, AMONG OTHER DUTIES, MAKING QUICKBOOKS ENTRIES AND RECORDING PAYMENTS TO VENDORS.  BETWEEN FEBRUARY 2019 AND APRIL 2020, HODGE FRAUDULENTLY MADE DEPOSITS INTO HER PERSONAL BANK ACCOUNT FROM THE OPERATING ACCOUNT OF INTEGRITY AND CAUSED FRAUDULENT PAYMENTS TO BE MADE TO HER ACCOUNT FROM INTEGRITY’S CREDIT CARD.THE INDICTMENT ALSO ALLEGES THAT IN FEBRUARY 2020, HODGE FORGED THE NAME AND SIGNATURE OF THE OWNER OF INTEGRITY TO APPLY FOR A LOAN FROM A FINANCIAL INSTITUTION IN THE AMOUNT OF $150,000 TO REPLENISH THE FUNDS IN THE INTEGRITY OPERATING ACCOUNT TO CONCEAL THE FRAUD AND IN APRIL 2020, INGRETITY APPLIED AND RECEIVED A LOAN IN THE AMOUNT OF $127,447 FROM THE PAYROLL PROTECTION PROGRAM OF THE SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, UNDER THE CARES ACT TO BE USED FOR EMPLOYEE SALARIES AND BUSINESS EXPENSES, AND HODGES ALLEGEDLY TRANSFERRED FUNDS FROM THE PPP ACCOUNT TO THE INTEGRITY OPERATING ACCOUNT TO CONCEAL HER FRAUD.  HODGE WAS TERMINATED IN MAY 2020, AFTER INTEGRITY DISCOVERED THE FRAUD. IF CONVICTED, HODGE FACES A MANDATORY MINIMUM OF TWO YEARS IN PRISON FOR THE AGGRAVATED IDENTITY THEFT CHARGE AND UP TO 20 YEARS IN PRISON FOR EACH COUNT OF WIRE FRAUD, AND A FINE OF $250,000.

DEPT OF JUSTICE