Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard says the city has concluded its internal investigation into 17 city employees accused of illegally obtaining COVID-19 federal loans.

The mayor's office says it is up to the federal investigators to see if the loans or grants were legally obtained.

The employees involved include 10 firefighters, five Water Department employees, one Public Works Department employee and one civilian police department employee.

The city says they are still employed by Mount Vernon, and that some of the employees have their own separate businesses.

A federal investigation into the alleged Paycheck Protection Program scam is ongoing. In a statement, the city said it has cooperated with the FBI.