Chester County Man Sentenced to 1 ½ Years in Prison for Stealing Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Funds

Summary

A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania dated December 2, 2021. It announces that Jacob Fulton of Coatesville was sentenced by United States District Judge Eduardo C. Robreno to one year and six months in prison, five years of supervised release and full restitution for falsely claiming approximately $32,000 in pandemic unemployment compensation authorized by the CARES Act. The release states that Fulton filed a Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claim in May 2020, kept certifying eligibility after being sent to Chester County Prison in July 2020, and conspired to file claims for at least two other inmates. Fulton pleaded guilty in August 2021 to mail fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud, according to the release.

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“Chester County Man Sentenced to 1 ½ Years in Prison for Stealing Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Funds.” Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2021-12-07-chester-county-man-sentenced-to-1-years-in-prison-for-steal-28229fd1ca/, SHA-256 a522da7b77d670f7a9d403ccfed89d5d532eb0e5fcb872d31a617848c225dce1.

Full text

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


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                    Thursday, December 2, 2021

   Chester County Man Sentenced to 1 ½ Years in Prison for
     Stealing Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Funds
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams announced that Jacob Fulton,
33, of Coatesville, PA, was sentenced to one year and six months in prison, five years of supervised
release, and ordered to pay full restitution by United States District Judge Eduardo C. Robreno for
falsely claiming and taking approximately $32,000 in pandemic unemployment compensation
authorized by the CARES Act.

On March 27, 2020, the CARES ACT was enacted and created the Pandemic Unemployment
Assistance (“PUA”) program, to provide unemployment benefits to workers who lost their jobs
because of the COVID-19 pandemic and who were ineligible for other unemployment compensation.
The defendant took advantage of the program by unlawfully submitting fraudulent PUA claims for
himself and for inmates of Chester County Prison, knowing that neither he nor these inmates were
entitled to these benefits.

In May 2020, the defendant filed a PUA claim for himself knowing that he was not eligible for such
benefits because he was not unemployed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. After Fulton was
arrested and sent to Chester County Prison in July 2020, he continued to submit weekly
certifications that he was eligible for these benefits (with the aid of his co-defendant), all while
knowing that he was not eligible for these benefits because he was in prison. At the same time,
Fulton conspired to file PUA claims on behalf of at least two other inmates and take a cut of the claim
payments for himself. In August 2021, the defendant pleaded guilty to charges of mail fraud and
conspiracy to commit mail fraud stemming from the scheme to file false PUA claims for himself and
others.

“Pandemic Unemployment Assistance funds are intended to help working Americans continue to pay
their bills and make ends meet, even when hours and wages have dropped dramatically due to the
pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Williams. “Thieves who attempt to take these funds are taking
advantage of others’ misfortune – ripping them off while also ripping off all taxpayers who fund the
program. Fulton fraudulently obtained thousands of dollars in funds that could have helped
struggling individuals.”

“The CARES ACT was designed to provide assistance to hard working Americans and their families
suffering from financial hardships. Today’s sentence sends the message that the FBI is committed to
protecting tax payer funded programs and will aggressively investigate fraudsters like Fulton and his
fellow inmates who seek to abuse such programs,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge
of the FBI's Philadelphia Division.

“Fulton thought he could get rich at the expense of Americans who desperately needed the Pandemic
Unemployment Assistance,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Yury
Kruty. “His sentence today shows just how much such criminal conduct will not be tolerated. Those
contemplating similar conduct should take notice”

“Jacob Fulton engaged in a scheme with his co-defendant to defraud the Pennsylvania Pandemic
Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program by obtaining personal information from inmates in
Chester County Jail and submitting fraudulent claims for PUA benefits on behalf of those inmates
even though they were incarcerated and not able and available to work. The U.S. Department of
Labor Office of Inspector General is grateful for our partnerships with the Pennsylvania Department
of Labor and our many law enforcement partners. We also want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office
for their continued efforts to prosecute those who violate public benefit programs and commit
fraud,” stated Syreeta Scott, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Philadelphia Region, U.S. Department of
Labor Office of Inspector General.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service,
Criminal Investigations, and the U.S. Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General, and is
being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Jeanette Kang.
Topic(s):                                             Contact:
Financial Fraud                                       UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE
                                                      EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA
Component(s):                                         615 Chestnut Street, Suite 1250
USAO - Pennsylvania, Eastern                          Philadelphia, PA 19106

                                                      JENNIFER CRANDALL
                                                      Media Contact
                                                      215-861-8300

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