Criminals use Coronavirus Relief Money to Buy Lamborghini
Sadly, millions of dollars given with the Payment Protection Program (PPP) were not used for its intended purpose but on frivolous purchases.
By Xan Johnson, Marketing –
As the recent Coronavirus pandemic swept over the United States, government leaders sought ways to combat the devastating losses to businesses and individuals that would inevitably occur. One such plan was the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), in which the government would assist businesses financially, allowing them to continue paying their employees. Reportedly, around $525 billion was given out between March and August of this year. But was all of this money actually put to good use?
As one might have guessed, there will always be those who attempt to take advantage of the generosity of others. In this case, over 50 individuals have already been charged with defrauding the new Paycheck Protection Program. And who knows how many more have yet to be caught. Concerning just these individuals, more than $70 million was stolen, but even this was only a fraction of what they originally sought after. This money was not used as it was intended, but instead wasted on frivolous purchases.
So how did all of this happen? With the many forms and applications required to obtain this aid, how could businesses or individuals acquire so much undeserved money? The answer is simple – lying. While each case was different, these individuals all lied. Lied about themselves, their businesses, and other important information.
Lying is a common problem around the world. In this case, we want to catch those who are guilty, and discourage future mistreatment of such programs. But how would one go about that? Time-proven lie detection solutions such as the polygraph are far too expensive and time-consuming to use with such a large group.
Though it may be new, an accurate, simple, and far less expensive solution to find out deception does exist. EyeDetect® by Converus is a streamlined lie detector that allows criminals to be discovered with 86% accuracy, in only thirty minutes. This product is able to achieve such results through the measurement of involuntary dilations of the subject’s pupils. An advanced, infrared camera takes thousands of measurements of the person’s eyes, while they read and respond to a series of true and false questions. When we lie, the cognitive load on our brains increases, which causes our pupils to dilate to take in more information. It’s portable, non-invasive, and deadly accurate.
The convenient nature of such a tool as EyeDetect means that a system could easily be put in place to test and locate these criminals guilty of fraud. Suspects or others involved with previously-charged individuals could be subjected to a brief test regarding their relation to such behaviors. Did they participate in fraudulent activity as well? EyeDetect can save the government millions of dollars and the valuable time of workers. The money from the Paycheck Protection Program should go to those who deserve it, not selfish criminals. As a society, we now have the tools to establish justice and truth in our homeland. It is up to us to take advantage of these wonderful creations.
Photo by / Eric Heidebroek
