Chandler Wilson Carroll Set to Change Plea in Fraudulent Loan Case

Chandler Wilson Carroll

Did you know that the Little Rock businesswoman who was accused of fraudulently collecting $2.1 million in pandemic loans is set to plead guilty?

Chandler Wilson Carroll is expected to change her plea from not guilty to guilty on July 8 in front of U.S. District Court Judge D.P. Marshall Jr., according to the notice of hearing filing filed last month.

If you recall, a federal indictment unsealed last year alleged that Carroll fraudulently collected $2.08 million in pandemic-era small-business loans. Carroll is accused of spending the money on a house, two vehicles and multiple items from jeweler Sissy’s Log Cabin.

She faces four counts each of wire fraud and money laundering.

The indictment alleged that Carroll obtained four loans by falsifying payroll and employee records. She submitted the loan applications through different banks, including JPMorgan Chase of New York, Simmons Bank of Pine Bluff and Celtic Bank of Salt Lake City, the document said.

The alleged scheme began in May 2020, when Carroll received a $1.6 million Paycheck Protection Program loan for Wilcarr Ventures LLC, according to the indictment. She reported her average monthly payroll as $640,000 with 121 workers. But a former employee told police that the business had just been launched and did not have more than four employees, the document said.

Carroll told Little Rock Soiree in 2020 that she founded the “WilCarr team of companies to serve the regulatory needs of medical device and health insurance companies across the U.S.” She claimed to lead a multinational operation that helped shepherd devices through the U.S. Food & Drug Administration and other regulatory bodies with consulting, resource and funding support.

Her attorney, Tim Dudley of Little Rock, didn’t return a call for comment.

River Cruise

Back in March — before Carroll decided to change her plea — her trial was set for Nov. 18, but Dudley asked for another court date.

The reason?

Dudley was scheduled to be in Europe on a river cruise with nearly all of his wife’s family, according to his motion for a continuance.

The cruise was paid for, he wrote.

“The payment may be refundable but, in any event, counsel would like to remain married,” Dudley said. “Failing to go on the cruise might jeopardize that.”

Judge Marshall agreed with Dudley’s request and changed the date to Feb. 24.