A businessman who federal authorities allege faked his own death to avoid prosecution for fraudulently seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in forgivable loans intended for businesses struggling from the pandemic has been captured, federal authorities said.
David A. Staveley, who also goes by Kurt Sanborn, was captured last week in Georgia, according to a statement Saturday from the U.S. Marshals Service.
Staveley, of Andover, Massachusetts, wanted nearly $440,000 in loans claiming that he needed to pay dozens of employees at three restaurants he owned, federal prosecutors in Rhode Island said when the charges were brought in May. However, two of the restaurants weren’t open before the pandemic began and had no employees, and he didn’t have any connection to the third, authorities said.
Massachusetts
Staveley had been released to home confinement, but on May 26, he removed his GPS monitor and disappeared, according to the U.S. Marshals Service.
His vehicle was found near a beach in Quincy, Massachusetts, last month. The vehicle was unlocked with the key in the ignition, and his wallet, credit cards, driver’s license and a suicide note were found in the car, authorities said.
But no evidence was found that he had taken his own life, and marshals concluded that Staveley faked his death and fled to avoid prosecution.
Staveley fled first to Tennessee and then to Georgia, where authorities determined he was using a false identity and driving a vehicle with stolen plates, and he was arrested Thursday in Alpharetta, Georgia, the U.S. Marshals Service said.
At the time of his arrest, he had multiple forms of identification and ID badges bearing different names, authorities said.
He is expected to appear in court in Georgia at an undetermined date, authorities said.
An email seeking comment was left Monday with Staveley’s attorney.
