COVID-19 Unemployment Benefit Fraud Scheme Charged Indictment unsealed following defendant’s arrest

Summary

A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of California dated Wednesday, March 3, 2021, announcing an indictment unsealed after a defendant's arrest. It states that a federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment charging Jason Vertz, 51, of Fresno, and Alana Powers, 45, an inmate at the Central California Women's Facility, with one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft. According to court documents cited in the release, the two submitted unemployment insurance claims to the California Employment Development Department in the names of inmates. The release states that EDD and the United States suffered an actual loss of over $103,000 and that the charges are only allegations. The case number printed is 1:21-cr-054-DAD.

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Full text

                                      Department of Justice
                                        U.S. Attorney’s Office
                                    Eastern District of California


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                     Wednesday, March 3, 2021

  COVID-19 Unemployment Benefit Fraud Scheme Charged
                    Indictment unsealed following defendant’s arrest
FRESNO, Calif. — On Thursday, Feb. 25, a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging two
defendants in a scheme that targeted California Employment Development Department (EDD)
unemployment insurance benefits that were intended for Californians hit hardest by the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic shutdown, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

The three-count indictment charges Jason Vertz, 51, of Fresno, and Alana Powers, 45, an inmate at
the Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF) in Chowchilla, with one count of conspiracy to
commit mail fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft. The indictment was unsealed and
Vertz was arraigned on Tuesday following his arrest.

According to court documents, Vertz and Powers submitted several fraudulent unemployment
insurance claims in Powers’ and other CCWF inmates’ names to EDD. Recorded jail calls and emails
show that Powers and other inmates, provided names, dates of birth, and social security numbers for
inmates at CCWF to Vertz to submit the fraudulent claims. Shortly thereafter, the benefits were
loaded onto debit cards that were mailed to the addresses the defendants provided.

The underlying applications for the claims stated that the inmates had worked within the prescribed
period as maids, cleaners, fabrication welders, and other occupations, and that they were available to
work, which was not true because they were incarcerated. The claims would have been denied if
accurate answers had been given. EDD and the United States have suffered an actual loss of over
$103,000 as a result of the fraud.

This case is the product of an investigation by the FBI, the California Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation Investigative Services Unit, and the California EDD. Assistant U.S. Attorneys
Alexandre Dempsey and Joseph Barton are prosecuting the case.

If convicted of the conspiracy to commit mail fraud, Vertz and Powers each face a maximum
statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. If convicted of the aggravated
identity theft, they face a mandatory two-year sentence consecutive to any other sentence. Any
sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any
applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a
number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until
and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Attachment(s):                                         Component(s):
Download Vertz_indictment.pdf                          USAO - California, Eastern
Topic(s):                                              Press Release Number:
Financial Fraud                                        1:21-cr-054-DAD
Public Corruption


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