Authorities: roofing firm exec bought $700K boat with PPP funds

FORT MYERS — Target Roofing & Sheet Metal Inc. President Casey David Crowther has been charged with using federal coronavirus relief funds for personal use, including buying a 40-foot boat for nearly $700,000.

Crowther, 35, of Fort Myers, is charged with making a false statement to a lending institution, according to an unsealed criminal complaint and a statement from the U.S. Attorneys office in Tampa. Crowther applied for and received a loan of $2,098,700 under the federal Payroll Protection Program, according to the complaint. Through the SBA, PPP loan rules stipulate that the funds have to be used for payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent and utilities.

But authorities, in the criminal complaint, contend within days of receiving the PPP funds, Crowther had wired $689,417 from the Target Roofing PPP account to a bank in Sarasota “for the purchase of a 2020 40’ Invincible Catamaran boat from Sara Bay Marina in Sarasota.” Crowther, officials allege, registered the boat in his name to his home address in North Fort Myers.

In addition to the boat purchase, the complaint alleges Crowther transferred funds out of the PPP account on other occasions. One transfer, of $126,000, went from the Target Roofing PPP account to a business checking account run by the company with the “statement as loan from casey,” the complaint alleges. Also, authorities contend Crowther wired $100,000 from the Target Roofing PPP account to the account of a former stakeholder in the company who resigned Dec. 31.

This case is being investigated by the United States Secret Service, according to the statement. If convicted, Crowther faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison.

Target Roofing, according to previous statements from the company, handles roof maintenance and repair services, in addition to reroofing and new construction roofing services. The company installs shingle, tile, metal and flat roofs on a variety of commercial structures, including high-rises, mid-rises, apartment buildings, condominiums, shopping plazas, churches, schools and government facilities. It had $32.78 million in revenue in 2019, and has around 200 employees at the end of last year.