Disgraced former TV anchor Stephanie Hockridge has been sentenced to ten years in prison for her involvement in a massive Covid relief fraud scheme — and she will be spending the next decade in the same cushy federal facility that houses convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell.
The 42-year-old former Phoenix news anchor, who later turned entrepreneur, was sentenced in a Texas federal courtroom on Friday. The anchor was also ordered to pay back nearly $64 million for her role in securing fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program loans at the peak of the pandemic, according to the Justice Department. Hockridge was found guilty in June of conspiracy to commit the massive wire fraud.
Punished for Her Crime
Hockridge is set to begin her prison term on Dec. 30. Hockridge will serve her sentence at the Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas — a minimum-security facility that's also home to Ghislaine Maxwell, Theranos swindler Elizabeth Holmes, and "Real Housewives of Salt Lake City" star-turned-fraudster Jen Shah, according to AZ Family.
Hockridge and her husband, Nathan Reis, launched a lending company called Blueacorn in 2020.
They said the business was meant to help small companies apply for federal Paycheck Protection Program loans during the height of the Covid-19 crisis.
However, prosecutors say the Scottsdale-based company was actually making money by taking kickbacks from borrowers based on how much loan money they received. They also accused Hockridge and her husband of intentionally submitting applications packed with false information to the U.S. Small Business Administration, which oversaw the PPP program.
In one case, Reis allegedly claimed he was both a military veteran and African American — neither of which was true.
Prosecutors say Hockridge and her husband handled more than $63 million in fraudulent PPP loans overall. The Paycheck Protection Program — an $800 billion government effort launched in 2020 — was meant to help small businesses keep workers on payroll during the pandemic.
Planned Scam
Investigators claim that instead of helping struggling companies, Hockridge and her husband used the money to enrich themselves. Hockridge insisted she was simply trying to assist small businesses through a confusing federal program during a time of "unprecedented need."
But a congressional report later found that Blueacorn routinely skipped proper background checks, charged illegal "success fees," and broke SBA rules. It also revealed that company leaders told employees to move fast on loan approvals, even if that meant accuracy and legitimacy were ignored.
Reis accepted a plea agreement in August and is scheduled to be sentenced in December.
Before launching Blueacorn, Hockridge spent seven years anchoring at KNXV-TV, Phoenix's ABC affiliate. She also previously worked as a reporter for CBS News Radio in London. Over her career, Hockridge earned an Emmy nomination and was even voted "Favorite Newscaster" by Arizona Foothills Magazine.
Hockridge's case now stands as one of the biggest examples of PPP loan fraud involving a well-known public figure.
