SEATTLE—A former Seattle man who stole over $1 million in jobless benefits and small business loans during the COVID-19 pandemic was sentenced on Tuesday to more than eight years in prison, Seattle U.S. Attorney Nick Brown said in a statement.
Bryan Sparks, 42, was indicted for the fraud scheme in November 2021 and pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in January. He was also ordered on Tuesday to pay more than $1 million in restitution.
U.S. District Judge James L. Robart called Sparks at the sentencing “a serial thief and a fraudster—one of the more successful ones,” and said he was appalled by the damage Sparks had done….