Georgia Pastor Who Used Covid Relief Funds to Buy a Mercedes Sentenced to Prison Term
A pastor from southern Georgia has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison after pleading guilty to two counts of wire fraud in connection with nearly $150,000 in fraudulent pandemic business disaster loans.
Mack De’Von Knight, 45, of Kingsland, Georgia, who in addition to serving as a pastor presented himself as a mortician, restaurateur, and tax preparer, was sentenced this week to 29 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $149,000 in restitution to the U.S. Small Business Administration. He also will surrender the Mercedes-Benz S-Class sedan that he bought with part of the money.
Knight, who according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the state of Georgia has at least three prior felony convictions for other acts of fraud, had pleaded guilty to the most recent charges March 25.
According to court records, in February and March of 2021, Knight applied for Economic Injury Disaster Loans from the SBA on behalf of multiple fictitious Camden County businesses, falsely claiming the businesses had had hundreds of thousands of dollars of gross revenue prior to the pandemic.
As a result of the filings, Knight received $149,900 from the SBA on behalf of a claimed tax business.
Access to MinistryWatch content is free. However, we hope you will support our work with your prayers and financial gifts. To make a donation, click here.
He later admitted the applications were fraudulent and that he had sent fictitious documents to the SBA, including a fake tax document and an altered bank record.
“So many businesses needed federal emergency assistance to stay afloat during the pandemic, and this defendant misdirected hundreds of thousands of dollars of that money to his own pockets,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Mack Knight’s actions affected every tax paying citizen, in particular those who needed help the most. The FBI will continue to make every effort to ensure federal funds are used as intended.”
The FBI investigated the case. Knight was prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan A. Porter and E. Greg Gilluly Jr.
