Once a trusted face on Phoenix television, Stephanie Hockridge has fallen from grace, sentenced to a decade behind bars for her role in a staggering COVID-era fraud scheme, the New York Post reported.
In a Texas federal court on Friday, the 42-year-old former news anchor was handed a 10-year prison sentence and ordered to pay nearly $64 million in restitution for orchestrating a multi-million-dollar scam involving fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans.
Hockridge, who once captivated audiences as an Emmy-nominated anchor at KNXV-TV in Phoenix, was convicted in June of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Her journey into infamy began in 2020 when she and her husband, Nathan Reis, founded Blueacorn, a Scottsdale-based lending services company purportedly aimed at helping small businesses navigate the federal PPP initiative.
The PPP, an $800 billion federal program launched during the COVID-19 crisis, was designed to keep workers employed, but Hockridge and Reis allegedly saw it as a personal piggy bank.
Prosecutors revealed that Blueacorn charged borrowers shady "success fees" and submitted applications riddled with false information to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), including a brazen claim by Reis that he was a veteran and African American.
Hockridge herself claimed Blueacorn was a “sincere effort to support small businesses” during a time of “unprecedented need,” but let’s unpack that noble rhetoric (Stephanie Hockridge).
The Department of Justice disagrees, reporting that the couple processed over $63 million in fraudulent loans while pocketing more than $300,000 for themselves—hardly the actions of altruists.
A congressional report further exposed Blueacorn’s operations, noting that leadership prioritized speed over scrutiny, instructing staff to rubber-stamp applications without proper vetting, all while flouting SBA rules.
Investigators allege that the proceeds from these fraudulent loans weren’t funneled back to struggling businesses but instead lined the pockets of Hockridge and Reis for personal enrichment.
Once celebrated as “Favorite Newscaster” by Arizona Foothills Magazine, Hockridge’s public image as a trustworthy journalist now lies in tatters, a cautionary tale of greed trumping integrity.
While some might argue desperation drove such actions during a pandemic, the scale of this deception—nearly $64 million in damages—suggests a calculated betrayal of a system meant to protect the little guy, not pad the bank accounts of the well-connected.
Her husband, Nathan Reis, opted for a plea deal in August and awaits sentencing in December, while Hockridge prepares to report to prison on December 30.
She’ll serve her time at the Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas, a minimum-security facility that’s practically a who's who of fallen celebrities, housing the likes of Ghislaine Maxwell, Elizabeth Holmes, and Jen Shah—talk about a reality TV reunion no one asked for.
As one of the most prominent public figures convicted in a PPP fraud case, Hockridge’s downfall serves as a stark reminder that exploiting government relief programs for personal gain won’t go unpunished, even if you once smiled into living rooms across Arizona.
