Maine man gets 33 months for pandemic relief 'high tech pocket picking'

Craig C. Franck (Police mugshot)

BANGOR, Maine - A Levant man was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Bangor for wire fraud and money laundering arising from his fraudulent receipt of Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection Plan (PPP) funds, it was announced on Wednesday.

U.S. District Judge Lance E. Walker sentenced Craig C. Franck, 40, to 33 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Franck pleaded guilty on Aug. 16.

According to court records, Franck formerly owned CCF Acoustics LLC and CCF Acoustical Systems. Neither company was in business, generated income or had employees in 2020 or 2021. Franck received Maine unemployment insurance benefits over the same time frame. In July 2020, Franck was arrested on felony fraud charges in Florida.

In the summer of 2020, Franck received $177,400 in EIDL funds after submitting two fraudulent loan applications to the U.S. Small Business Administration, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorneys Office. In the applications, Franck made numerous false representations regarding CCF Acoustics LLC and CCF Acoustical Systems, misrepresented that the funds would be used to alleviate economic injury caused by the pandemic, and claimed that he was not subject to criminal charges. Franck illegally used the EIDL funds to retain a criminal defense attorney and post bail in his Florida criminal case. He also used the funds to purchase a pickup truck and pay for other personal expenses.

Then in March 2021, Franck received a $145,060 PPP loan after submitting a fraudulent loan application to a private lender. In support of the application, Franck provided false IRS documents and forged checking account statements. Franck illegally spent the PPP funds on a second vehicle, online retail purchases and living expenses, among other prohibited uses.

In imposing sentence, Judge Walker observed that Franck engaged in a cynical scheme amounting to "high tech pocket picking" and had displayed "an extraordinary amount of narcissism" in carrying out the pandemic fraud.

Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.