CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KFVS) – Federal prosecutors say a Cape Girardeau man was sentenced to more than three years in jail after he pleaded guilty to fraudulently applying for pandemic loans and filing fake tax returns.

Myles Benjamin Depew, 35, of Cape Girardeau, was sentenced to 39 months is prison and ordered to pay $25,000 in restitution to the United States and $10,728 in restitution to the state of Missouri.

Depew pleaded guilty to three counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.

Prosecutors say Depew used his job as a tax preparer to gain access to names, birthdates, and Social Security numbers that weren’t his own. He then used the information to apply for two Economic Injury Disaster Loans totalling $25,000 in 2020. Depew then filed two false tax returns in Missouri that triggered refunds of $2,060 and $8,663 in the following years.

U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration agents say Depew estimated that he gambled $40,000. spent $5,000 on food and another $5,000 on methamphetamine.