PDA

View Full Version : California woman admits scam to obtain $500,000 in COVID-19 benefits



jimnyc
12-17-2020, 07:50 PM
What a piece of shit. I can't stand people that take advantage of tragedies or deaths. There's a site out there that tracks all of the fraud taken place on Gofundme. The majority of it is people that are seeking funds due to the loss of a loved one. Usually a baby or another young child. Often found to be photos from Google, or just someone not related trying to capitalize off of the true death of a child.

There has been a lot of this PPP fraud this year. People taking advantage of the lax rules in getting the money up front as quick as possible, thinking they weren't going top check anything. :rolleyes:

---

California woman admits scam to obtain $500,000 in COVID-19 benefits

LOS ANGELES, Dec 16 (Reuters) - A Southern California woman who prosecutors say obtained more than $500,000 in COVID-19 benefits using stolen Social Security numbers and other personal information pleaded guilty on Wednesday to a federal criminal charge.

Cara Marie Kirk-Connell, 32, admitted in a plea agreement to purchasing stolen identities through the "dark web" and watching YouTube videos on how to file fraudulent unemployment claims, prosecutors said.

Kirk-Connell pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles to a single count of use of an unauthorized access device.

The Riverside County woman faces a maximum of to 10 years in federal prison when she is sentenced in April, although federal sentencing guidelines typically call for less time behind bars.

As part of her plea deal with prosecutors, Kirk-Connell admitted procuring debit cards worth more than $500,000 from the California Employment Development Department using stolen personal information.

California EDD records showed that the cards and identities were used to obtain approximately $534,149 in COVID-19-related unemployment funds, of which nearly $270,000 had already been spent, according to an affidavit filed as part of the investigation.

The benefits are intended for distribution under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, passed by Congress in March.

Rest - https://news.trust.org/item/20201216210012-gplur