A pastor who swindled $3.5 million in Covid relief money to fund his lavish lifestyle has been sentenced to 18 months in prison.
Rudolph Brooks, 48, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering last week after exploiting the pandemic-era Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
Brooks was arrested in April 2021 for fraudulently obtaining PPP loans after submitting falsified documents for companies under his control, Department of Justice saying.
He obtained $3.5 million after inflating the number of employees and payroll expenses on his loan applications. He then used the funds on personal expenses, including a 2018 Tesla Model 3, a property in a wealthy Maryland town and extravagant spending at restaurants, supermarkets and other retailers.
Brooks, founder and senior pastor of Kingdom Tabernacle of Restoration Church, was also ordered to forfeit more than $2 million, the Tesla and real estate he purchased with the fraudulently obtained funds, court records from his sentencing showed.
The fraud was not related to Brooks’ position in the church.
Rudolph Brooks, 48, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering after allegedly exploiting the Covid Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Brooks, founder and senior pastor of Kingdom Tabernacle of Restoration Church, was sentenced to 18 months in prison on Tuesday, August 27. He is seen preaching during a church service.
He obtained $3.5 million after inflating the number of employees and payroll expenses on his loan applications. He then used the funds on personal expenses, including a 2018 Tesla Model 3, (file image) owned in the wealthy town of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, and extravagant spending at restaurants, supermarkets and other retailers.
Brooks admitted to using PPP loan funds for personal benefit and for payments and purchases that were not permitted under the program, according to Justice Department documents.
In addition to using the funds to purchase a residence, a luxury vehicle and other lavish shopping expenses, Brooks also made cash withdrawals and transfers to other bank accounts under his control.
He pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering charges on August 27.
A judge ordered the pastor to serve 18 months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release, and ordered the forfeiture of several assets.
Brooks applied for the PPP loan through a Maryland car dealership he owned called Cars Direct in May 2020, court documents revealed.
He received a $1.5 million PPP loan, deposited directly into a Cars Direct bank account on which he was the sole signer, after submitting false tax forms and payroll records related to the dealership.
Brooks applied for the PPP loan through his Maryland-based car dealership, Cars Direct, Kingdom Tabernacle (pictured) and a company called Madaro, LLC.
Brooks received a $1.5 million PPP loan in May 2020, deposited directly into a Cars Direct bank account on which he was the sole signer, after submitting false tax and payroll forms related to the dealership. He then transferred money from these Cars Direct accounts to his own personal accounts and used the funds on credit card bills.
He fraudulently applied for two additional PPP loans for $1.8 million and $200,000. Those funds were deposited into accounts associated with Kingdom Tabernacle and Madaro, LLC, of which he was the sole signatory.
He then opened a bank account in the name of Payroll by BJM, into which he transferred $500,000 of the loan proceeds. He also opened other bank accounts in the name of Cars Direct to which he transferred the loan proceeds.
Brooks then transferred money from these Cars Direct accounts to his own personal accounts and used the funds on credit card bills, at restaurants, retail stores, grocery stores, car auctions, and on his home mortgage payments.
Among his purchases were a $507,010 property in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, purchased in the name of Rudolph Brooks, and a 2018 Tesla Model 3, purchased for $60,407 in the name of his son. The vehicle was later registered in Maryland in Brooks’ own name.
Under federal PPP loan requirements, funds will be used to cover payroll costs, mortgage interest, rent and utilities.
Brooks also allegedly attempted to receive funds through the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIJD) program, according to court records.
He applied for the loans through Cars Direct and Kingdom Tabernacle, but both applications were rejected by the Small Business Administration due to “poor credit history.”
Brooks, pictured delivering a sermon, was sentenced to 18 months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release. He also had to forfeit more than $2 million, the Tesla and real estate he purchased with the fraudulently obtained funds, court records from his sentencing showed.
The website and Facebook pages associated with Kingdom Tabernacle were taken down shortly after his arrest, DailyMail.com previously reported.
A cached version of the websites described Brooks as “a man after God’s own heart” who has a “passion for God’s people.”
“From a very early age, Pastor Brooks knew he had a calling to ministry,” the site added. “People received their deliverance before the altar call because the Word of the Lord was so rich within them.”
At a previous church in Maryland, Brooks was the assistant pastor in charge of overseeing church finances, according to his biography on the now-deleted site.
