Ex-Miami cop pleads guilty to ripping off COVID loan program

A former Miami police officer is facing up to two decades in federal prison after pleading guilty to fleecing more than $200,00 from pandemic-era relief loan programs.

Tramaine Liptrot, 43, pleaded guilty to wire fraud Wednesday before U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom in Miami federal court. Federal prosecutors say Liptrot applied for two Paycheck Protection Program federal loans on behalf of Liptrots Tax Services LLC, a company he owned.

Liptrot admitted to fraudulently obtaining a PPP loan in June 2020 and falsely claiming that his company spent close to $37,000 every month to pay four employees’ salaries. He also submitted a bogus tax document that stated Liptrots Tax’s employees were paid more than $440,000 in 2019.

Then, in March 2021, Liptrot sought another PPP loan. In that application, he said he had an average monthly payroll of more than $43,000. The tax form he provided stated that he paid more than $496,000 in wages in 2020.

Since Congress adopted the pandemic relief program run by the Small Business Administration, South Florida has been one of the top sources of PPP loan fraud. Businesspeople, law enforcement officers and others have been convicted of stealing millions from the government program by fabricating loan applications for their companies, including 17 Broward County Sheriff’s Office employees.

Several used their ill-gotten loans to buy Lamborghinis, Teslas, Porsches and other expensive cars — and flaunted their luxurious lifestyles on social media.

FBI Miami’s Area Corruption Task Force, along with the city of Miami Police Department and SBA’s Office of the Inspector General, investigated Liptrot. The former cop will be sentenced on Aug. 6 and faces up to 20 years in federal prison.