Green County woman sentenced in CARES Act fraud case

Mandy Ellen Bauer was sentenced to a year and a day in federal prison

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (WTVQ) – A Green County woman was sentenced to federal prison for filing fraudulent applications for COVID-19 relief money, according to the Lexington Herald-Leader.

The report says 41-year old Mandy Ellen Bauer was sentenced Tuesday to a year and a day in prison.

She had a small business called ‘Family Personal Services’ that bought used furniture and then refinished and sold the items, according to the report.

According to the report, she filed nine applications in 2020 for various forms of financial help authorized by Congress to help businesses during the economic downturn brought on by the pandemic.

Bauer claimed in some of her applications that she had six employees and claimed 10 in others, when her business had no employees at all, according to the report.

She applied for $230,000 in financial assistance, according to the report.

According to the report, none of her applications were approved, so she didn’t receive any money, but she pleaded guilty to wire fraud for filing the false requests electronically.

People can report suspected fraud on the U.S. Department of Justice’s website or by calling 1-866-720-5721.