Bergen County man gets two years for $670,000 COVID-19 relief fraud

A Rutherford man was sentenced on Aug. 12 to two years in prison over a COVID-19 relief scheme, officials announced.

Malak Faltawws, 49, had pleaded guilty in Newark federal court to wire fraud and money laundering in June 2025, U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer said in a release.

Faltawws obtained $670,292 in COVID-19 emergency relief funds intended for distressed small businesses from March 2020 to November 2021 by submitting fraudulent applications that misstated his businesses' revenue, expenses and number of employees, Frazer said. The money, which came from federal Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), was used by Faltawws for personal gain, he said.

U.S. District Judge Evelyn Padin also ordered Faltawws to three years probation and pay restitution of $670,292, plus a $10,000 fine.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Bergen County man gets two years for $670,000 COVID-19 relief fraud