LEBANON — An Oregon man pleaded guilty to multiple charges Thursday, June 17, in a scheme that bilked the federal government of millions in COVID-19 relief funds, prosecutors said.

Andrew Aaron Lloyd, a 51-year-old Lebanon resident, pleaded guilty to charges of bank fraud, money laundering and aggravated identity theft, according to Scott Erik Asphaug, acting U.S. attorney for Oregon.

Lloyd was accused of taking advantage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, better known as the CARES Act.

“CARES Act relief programs were designed to help American small businesses weather a historically difficult time in our nation’s economic history,” Asphaug said in a statement. “Andrew Lloyd saw an opportunity to profit off the COVID-19 pandemic and did so at the expense of hardworking Americans.”

Beginning in April of 2020, Lloyd began applying for loans through various programs authorized under the CARES Act, fraudulently using multiple business names and the identities of relatives and business associates.

Ultimately, Lloyd had 10 applications accepted and received payment of about $3.5 million, prosecutors said. He used the money to buy real estate and invest in stocks, which rose in value. When federal authorities seized his investment accounts in January, they were worth more than $11 million, officials said.

As part of his plea agreement, Lloyd agreed to repay more than $3.6 million to the federal government and will forfeit any proceeds he made from the ill-gotten cash. Russell Anthony Schort, 39, of Myrtle Creek, was charged as an accomplice to Lloyd and is scheduled to plead guilty next month, officials said.

Prosecutors recommended a sentence of more than five years in prison for Lloyd, who is scheduled to be sentenced in September.