NORFOLK, VA. — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)), published as received.
NORFOLK, Va. – A Suffolk man currently in prison for a federal firearms conviction was sentenced today to three years in prison for conspiracy to commit fraud in connection with major disaster benefits, making false statements, and bank fraud. This is the third federal felony conviction for Raymond Antoine Wyche, 34.
According to court documents, Wyche was sentenced on Jan. 17, 2017, to four years and nine months in prison after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
After completing his prison term for that conviction, Wyche was again incarcerated in 2020 at Western Tidewater Regional Jail for a violation of his federal supervised release. Wyche received $33,592 in response to an unemployment benefits claim application filed. The application falsely stated that he lost his job at a barbershop in Chesapeake as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and that he was ready, willing, and- able to work. The claim was recertified weekly through September 2021, including while Wyche was incarcerated and after his release from custody while he was employed.
While in jail, Wyche also provided the personal identifying information of other inmates to a co-conspirator who used that information to file additional unemployment benefit claims during the COVID pandemic. In sum, the conspiracy resulted in six successful unemployment claims in the names of inmates for a total of $112,508 in unemployment benefits. Wyche and his co-conspirator kept most of the benefits, providing little or nothing to the inmates whose names and information were used in the claims. The conspiracy also involved fraudulent claims using stolen identities of non-inmates.
After his release from Western Tidewater while on supervised pretrial release, Wyche provided his personal information to another co-conspirator who used it to file a loan application through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which was administered by the Small Business Administration to provide low-interest financing to pay up to eight weeks of payroll costs for eligible small businesses experiencing substantial financial disruption due to the pandemic. The application falsely stated that Wyche was the sole proprietor and employee of a landscaping business called “Wyche Services” with a gross annual income for 2020 of $98,740. A fraudulent IRS Form 1040, Schedule C, was attached as purported supporting documentation. In response to the application, on May 13, 2021, $20,570 was disbursed to Wyche’s credit union account.
In December 2021, while he remained on supervised pretrial release, Wyche deposited a counterfeit check purportedly made out to Wyche in the amount of $4,500 from the bank account of a Hampton Roads car dealership. Wyche attempted to deposit another counterfeit check for $2,000.
On July 18, 2022, Wyche again pled guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and on Dec. 12, 2022, was sentenced to seven years in prison. The three-year sentence imposed today will run consecutive to the sentence Wyche is currently serving.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Washington Field Division, the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office, and the Chesapeake Police Department investigated this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca Gantt prosecuted the case.
On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. The core mission of the Fraud Division is to zealously investigate and prosecute those who steal or fraudulently misuse taxpayer dollars. Department of Justice efforts to combat fraud support President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case Nos. 2:25-cr-138, 2:22-cr-55, and 2:15-cr-16.
