NORFOLK, VA – Derickson Lawrence, 67, from Mount Vernon, New York, has been convicted by a federal jury on charges of wire and mail fraud. Lawrence served as the Chief Executive Officer and was the sole proprietor of MarketView Resources, Inc., a payroll service provider with a significant client base in the mid-Atlantic restaurant franchise sector.
Trial evidence indicated that between March 2017 and October 2019, Lawrence diverted approximately $230,000 from an account holding employees’ wages to his personal brokerage account, engaging in high-risk options trading with the funds. Additionally, Lawrence allocated the restaurant workers’ wages for personal use, including debit cards for himself, an employee, and relatives. This misconduct led to instances where there was insufficient funding to fulfill wage withdrawals by employees, with a financial services company covering nearly $90,000 in transactions before severing ties with Lawrence in September 2019. At the time services were discontinued, MarketView’s records indicated an available balance of over $465,000 to cardholders, whereas the actual bank balance was merely $2,400.
Moreover, Lawrence was found guilty of defrauding the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) by falsely claiming in April 2020 that his company had two employees with monthly wages exceeding $10,000. Utilizing an altered bank statement from February 2016 to misrepresent MarketView’s payroll, Lawrence obtained a PPP loan of $26,250, which he subsequently lost in options trading.
Lawrence is scheduled for sentencing on July 19, facing up to 20 years in prison for each of the 11 counts. Sentences for federal offenses are generally determined below the maximum penalties, influenced by the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other relevant factors.