Ex-Miami cop lied to get $246,000 in PPP loans during the pandemic, authorities say
A former Miami police officer was arrested Monday morning after investigators say he lied to authorities to get over $246,000 in loans meant to help small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, using the proceeds on himself, mortgages for properties that he owned, and trucks and trailers.
A 2022 routine licensing inspection by the Florida Department of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco revealed that Djimy Joseph, 47, a Miami police officer and owner of Sabor Latino Bar & Grill, 2350 NW Seventh St., in Miami, was violating a state law that prohibits cops from owning or operating businesses that sell alcohol, according to his arrest warrant issued Saturday.
The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office opened a public corruption probe into Joseph, who had been with the Miami police department since 2008. They found he allegedly used the bar and other businesses he owned to fraudulently apply for and receive over $246,000 in COVID relief funds through the Paycheck Protection Program provided by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act in 2020.
He then used the money for himself, the warrant says, though it did not specify what exactly he did with the money.
According to investigators, Joseph submitted false statements and misrepresented the number of employees and monthly payroll amounts, business revenues and expenses to receive a larger loan. Joseph said he had a monthly payroll of nearly $100,000 and 14 employees, contrasting the business’ bank statements and statements from former employees.
Miami police did not immediately say whether Joseph resigned or was fired, but the State Attorney’s Office said he was no longer working with the police department.
“Public Corruption in any form cannot and must not be tolerated at any level of public service,” State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement. “Mr. Joseph’s actions show a deliberate and intentional pattern of behavior that was meant for his personal financial gain at the expense of breaking the law he had sworn to uphold as an officer and betraying the trust the public placed in him.”
South Florida has been a hot spot in the nation in PPP fraud. Among those ensnared were 17 Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies and correctional officers who have been charged with pocketing an average of $25,000 in pandemic loans. They have lost their jobs and many have pleaded guilty.
READ MORE: Lambos. Jewels. How ‘easy money’ from Uncle Sam made Miami a feast for PPP fraudsters
Joseph was arrested by the Public Corruption Task Force of the State Attorney’s Office. He is charged with organized scheme to defraud over $50,000, money laundering over $100,000 and providing false official statements. He remained at Miami-Dade County’s Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center as of Monday afternoon on a $25,000 bond.
Miami Herald staff writer Jay Weaver contributed to this story. This breaking news story will be updated.
