Date: October 7, 2021 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov PROVIDENCE — A Massachusetts man who became the first person in the country charged with fraudulently seeking forgivable pandemic relief small business loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, and who faked suicide shortly after his arrest resulting in a nationwide search for him by the U.S. Marshals Service, was sentenced today to 56 months in federal prison, announced Acting United States Attorney Richard B. Myrus. David Adler Staveley, a/k/a Kurt David Sanborn, a/k/a David Sanborn of Andover, Massachusetts, conspired with David Andrew Butziger of Warwick, Rhode Island, to file four fraudulent CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program forgivable loan applications with a Rhode Island bank, falsely claiming they owned businesses with large monthly payrolls when, in fact, they did not own the businesses. Staveley admitted that as part of the scheme, on April 6, 2020, he and Butziger filed fraudulent loan applications seeking $185,570 to pay employees at Top of the Bay restaurant in Warwick, Rhode Island; $144,050 at Remington House Inn restaurant in Warwick, Rhode Island; $108,777 at On The Trax restaurant in Berlin, MA; and $105,381 to pay employees at Dock Wireless, an unincorporated business. Staveley had no ownership interest in Top of the Bay, Remington House Inn, or On The Trax which were closed at the time the loan applications were submitted and remain closed. Dock Wireless had no employees and no wages were ever paid by the business. Three weeks after being charged and appearing in U.S. District Court in May 2020, and released to home detention with electronic monitoring, Staveley removed his electronic monitoring device, staged his own suicide, and fled. Staveley left suicide notes with associates and left his wallet in his unlocked car that he parked along the ocean in Massachusetts. Further investigation determined that between May 26 and July 23, 2020, Staveley, who was to have appeared in federal court on June 2, 2020, traveled to various states using false identities and stolen license plates. He was apprehended by the United States Marshals Service in Alpharetta, GA., on July 23, 2020. Appearing today before U.S. District Court Judge Mary S. McElroy, Staveley was sentenced to 56 months in federal prison to be followed by 3 years of federal supervised release. Butziger is scheduled to be sentenced on November 1, 2021. The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lee H. Vilker. The matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. The Justice Department acknowledges and thanks the SBA Office of Inspector General and the FDIC, Office of Inspector General for their assistance in the investigation.
