Chattanooga Pastor Sentenced for Wire and Tax Fraud Scheme

Ricky Lee Taylor | Courtesy: Arena of Praise

Chattanooga Pastor and former UTC basketball player Ricky Lee Taylor, 36, has pleaded guilty to one count of Wire Fraud and one count of Tax Fraud.

Taylor was sentenced to 30 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

The Court ordered that Taylor pay a money judgment of $942,238.85 and $2,532,528.18 in restitution to the United States, according to the United States Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Tennessee.

Taylor ran businesses that include Potter’s Wheel Trucking, LLC; Ricky Taylor Basketball, LLC; Arena of Praise; Spirit Logistics, LLC; and Reap Real Estate and Property.

Taylor applied for Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) loans on behalf of these businesses and provided fraudulent documentation in support of the loans.

In total, Taylor submitted eight fraudulent applications and received approximately $1,800,000 in loans.

Taylor then filed fraudulent, personal tax returns that did not account for the income from the PPP loans.