An Arkansas businessman has been sentenced in federal court in Spokane to over 16 years in prison and to pay over $20 million for leading a nationwide COVID-relief scam that was uncovered by the Eastern Washington COVID-19 Fraud Strike Force.

William O. Mize, the ringleader behind a massive fraud scheme involving staged accidents and fabricated insurance claims, including one in which a prominent Spokane developer participated, has been sentenced in federal court in Spokane to 12 years in prison.

Total employment in the Spokane-Spokane Valley metropolitan statistical area fell in September, as did the unemployment rate.