A tourism company owned by the Irish government agreed to pay back more than $4.4 million after receiving a Paycheck Protection Program loan they were ineligible for, officials with the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
CIE Tours International was accused of violating the False Claims Act by applying for two PPP loans in 2020 and 2021.
The company received two loans of more than $1.7 million each, both of which were fully forgivable under the program’s terms, according to the settlement.
However, the company was ineligible for those loans as an entity owned by the government of Ireland and because they exceeded the maximum number of employees, officials said.
Total interest on the loans was calculated at more than $30,000, according to the settlement.
CIE Tours cooperated with the investigation and agreed to pay more than $4.4 million under the settlement terms.
The company did not admit liability, according to the settlement.
The suit was filed by a whistleblower under a provision of the False Claims Act, which allows private parties to file suits on behalf of the federal government and share in the financial recovery, officials said.
The whistleblower will receive $428,985 from the total settlement, officials said.
A spokesperson for CIE Tours did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
