South Florida tax preparer and two others sentenced for conspiring to defraud COVID-19 relief program

Date: March 10, 2026

Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov

Miami – The final defendant in a scheme to fraudulently obtain Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act has been sentenced in federal court.

U.S. District Judge Ed Artau sentenced Max Alberto Mera Ulloa to 27 months in federal prison, followed by one year of supervised release, after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

“This scheme exploited emergency relief programs funded by the American taxpayer,” said U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida. “These defendants submitted more than 165 fraudulent loan applications and then demanded kickbacks from the very funds meant to keep workers employed. Today’s sentence closes out this case and sends a clear message: those who steal from programs designed to help our communities will be investigated, prosecuted, and held accountable.”

“These sentences stand as a reminder that stealing from federal programs is stealing from taxpayers—and we will not let those crimes go unanswered,” said Special Agent in Charge Ron Loecker of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Florida Field Office. “IRS Special Agents, alongside our law enforcement partners, will continue to safeguard taxpayer dollars by ensuring criminal conduct carries real consequences.”

According to court documents, between May 2020 and March 2021, Christian Mendoza, Guillermo Lopez Carrazana, and Mera Ulloa, all residents of Miami-Dade County, conspired to submit more than 165 false and fraudulent PPP loan applications to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The SBA administered the emergency relief program under the CARES Act to help small businesses maintain payroll and cover essential expenses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The defendants owned and operated several businesses, including G LUX LLC, Global Tax & Accounting Group Corp., CM Logistics Systems LLC, and Max Mera Corporation. Through these entities, they submitted fraudulent loan applications that misrepresented payroll expenses and employee information in order to obtain substantial loan amounts under false pretenses.

The conspirators also carried out a kickback scheme where they had the borrower pay them a portion of the money they received from submitting the fraudulent loan applications. Rather than using the PPP loan proceeds for their intended purposes, the defendants used the funds for personal enrichment.

Mendoza and Lopez Carrazana also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Mendoza, a tax preparer, was sentenced on Dec. 19, 2025, to 33 months in federal prison, followed by 12 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay $2,287,855 in restitution.

Lopez Carrazana was also sentenced on Dec. 19, 2025, to 22 months in federal prison, followed by 18 months of supervised release. A restitution hearing for Lopez Carrazana is scheduled for March 10.

A restitution hearing for Mera Ulloa is scheduled for May 6.

U.S. Attorney Reding Quiñones; Special Agent in Charge Loecker of IRS-CI, Florida Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Brett D. Skiles of the FBI, Miami Field Office made the announcement.

IRSCI, Florida Field Office, and FBI Miami investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Roger Cruz prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Grosnoff is handling asset forfeiture.

IRS-CI is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. It is the only federal law enforcement agency with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code. IRS-CI has 18 field offices located across the U.S. and maintains an international presence through attaché posts abroad.