Joplin Resident Charged with Federal Wire Fraud Over COVID‑Era SBA Loans

On a quiet Thursday in early August, a federal indictment was unsealed that put a Joplin mechanic—well, someone who claimed to run a mechanical‑services business—squarely in the crosshairs of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri.

Dylan Gregory Neely, 42, was charged with three felony counts of wire fraud, a serious accusation that hinges on his alleged misrepresentations on three separate loan applications backed by the Small Business Administration (SBA). Those loans, rolled out under the CARES Act’s Emergency Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), added up to $392,834.

The timeline is almost cinematic. The first loan application landed on July 3, 2020, just a few weeks after the pandemic hit the United States. Two more followed—February 1, 2021 and April 14, 2021—each tied to two fictitious companies Neely said he owned: Neely Mechanical Services and Neely Mechanical.

According to the indictment, the SBA was led to believe Neely employed a sizeable workforce. In reality, the paperwork overstated the number of employees—none of the claimed staff actually existed. And after the money arrived, it didn’t go toward payroll, rent, or other pandemic‑related expenses as required. Instead, prosecutors say the funds were funneled into personal bills and other unrelated costs.

“If the SBA had known the truth, none of those loans would have been approved,” the charging document reads, underscoring the heart of the alleged scheme: false statements to obtain federal aid. The government is now seeking forfeiture of any property derived from the loan proceeds, plus any additional penalties the court may impose.

As of Friday, court records show no hearing date has been set for Neely. He remains free pending trial, but the legal cloud hanging over him is decidedly heavy.

Cases like this serve as a stark reminder that while pandemic relief programs were designed to keep businesses afloat, they also opened doors for fraudsters. The Justice Department continues to pursue individuals it says abused the system, hoping to deter future misconduct.