Former Professional Basketball Player Admits Pandemic Loan Fraud

ST. LOUIS – A former professional basketball player on Wednesday admitted committing $272,774 worth of fraud involving pandemic aid programs.

Lorenzo Gordon, 41, of Chesterfield, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one felony count of theft of government money.

As part of his plea agreement, Gordon admitted fraudulently applying for two loans from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and three from the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Program. Both programs were intended to help businesses and their employees during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gordon’s applications for the loan programs contained false information about three companies that applied for loans: Logo Fitness LLC, Elite 50 Basketball Training LLC and Elite Health and Fitness Company LLC. Gordon fraudulently received a total of $107,074 in PPP loans and $165,700 in EIDL loans and advances, his plea says.

Gordon is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 9, 2025. The theft charge is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both prison and a fine.

The Internal Revenue Service and the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Klocke is prosecuting the case.

Anyone with information about pandemic fraud should call the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or report via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.