ILLINOIS WOMEN PLEAD GUILTY TO WIRE FRAUD AND CONSPIRACY TO COMMIT WIRE FRAUD

Octavia Murphy, a resident of Bourbonnais, Illinois, pleaded guilty on January 27, 2026, in U.S. District Court, Central District of Illinois, to one count conspiracy to commit wire fraud and four counts wire fraud. In the same investigation, Regina Murphy, a resident of Kankakee, Illinois, pleaded guilty on December 17, 2025, in U.S. District Court, Central District of Illinois, to one count conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count wire fraud.

Our investigation found that Octavia and Regina Murphy, along with 12 alleged codefendants, submitted false information to the Small Business Administration and its participating lenders to receive Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) advances, Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, and PPP loan forgiveness. Octavia Murphy orchestrated a scheme whereby she submitted false applications containing material misstatements and fictitious documentation to make claims for pandemic relief programs on behalf of herself and the other co-conspirators, for which she was paid kickbacks. Regina Murphy and numerous co-conspirators voluntarily provided Octavia Murphy with their personally identifiable information and their bank routing transit and account numbers. As a result of the scheme, Octavia Murphy, Regina Murphy and the other codefendants received $93,000 in EIDL advances and $74,428 in PPP loans to which they were not entitled.

Judicial proceedings for the codefendants, including five Amtrak employees, are ongoing.