From Broadcast Booth to Prison Cell: Former Phoenix Anchor Sentenced in Major COVID Loan Scam

It's always a bit jarring, isn't it, when a familiar face from your television screen ends up in the news for all the wrong reasons? Well, that's precisely what's happened with Rick D'Amico, a name many Phoenix residents will undoubtedly recognize. The former long-time local TV anchor, once a fixture in our living rooms, is now facing a rather stark reality: federal prison time for his role in a significant COVID-19 relief loan fraud scheme. It’s quite the fall from grace, to say the least.

D'Amico, who graced the airwaves for years, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. And just recently, a federal judge handed down his sentence: 20 months behind bars, followed by three years of supervised release. On top of that, he's been ordered to pay a hefty $1.7 million in restitution. That's a sum that really puts the scale of the operation into perspective, you know?

So, what exactly did D'Amico get himself mixed up in? He wasn't alone, of course. This whole elaborate plot centered around the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, funds specifically designed to help struggling businesses and their employees stay afloat during the devastating pandemic. Instead, D'Amico, alongside a husband and wife duo, David and Pamela Hines, saw an opportunity for illicit gain.

According to court documents and proceedings, D'Amico's involvement wasn't just peripheral. He reportedly leveraged his public name and connections to lend an air of legitimacy to what were essentially fraudulent business operations. Picture this: creating fake companies, fabricating employee rosters, and inflating payroll expenses – all to secure these emergency relief loans under false pretenses. He even personally received some of these ill-gotten funds, becoming an active participant in the deception rather than just a passive observer.

The scale of the scheme really just beggars belief. The conspirators submitted numerous fraudulent applications, painting a picture of thriving businesses with extensive payrolls and operating expenses. Yet, in reality, these were often shell companies or vastly exaggerated entities. They literally cooked the books, inventing employees and expenses that simply didn't exist, all to siphon off vital funds meant for those truly in need.

And where did all this money go, you might ask? Certainly not to keep legitimate businesses alive or feed families during a crisis. Oh no. The ill-gotten gains, totaling over $1.7 million, were allegedly used to fuel a rather extravagant lifestyle for the conspirators. We're talking luxury cars, high-end consumer goods, and, believe it or not, even cosmetic surgery. It’s a stark, almost sickening contrast to the millions of honest small business owners who genuinely struggled and played by the rules.

This conviction isn't isolated, either. The Hineses, D'Amico's co-conspirators, have also faced their reckoning. David Hines was sentenced to four years in federal prison, and Pamela Hines received a one-year, one-day sentence. It's a clear message that justice, while sometimes slow, will ultimately catch up to those who seek to exploit national crises for personal enrichment. D'Amico's sentencing underscores the serious consequences of such actions, especially when a public figure betrays the trust placed in them.