The Great Grift: 5 things to know about how COVID-19 relief aid was stolen or wasted in the U.S.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The greatest grift in U.S. history was brazen, even simple. Criminals and gangs grabbed the money. So did an U.S. soldier in Georgia, the pastors of a defunct church in Texas, a former state lawmaker in Missouri and a roofing contractor in Montana.

Over the last three years, thieves plundered billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief aid intended to combat the worst pandemic in a century and to stabilize an economy in free fall.

Here are some key takeaways from an Associated Press analysis of what may have been stolen or wasted.

HOW MUCH WAS STOLEN?

When the going got pandemic, Bob Stroh commited to Hallmark

When the pandemic started, Bob Stroh felt unmoored.