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Hampton Gang Member Sentenced for Pandemic Unemployment Fraud (Press Release, September 30, 2022)

Summary

A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia dated September 30, 2022, about Case No. 4:21-cr-66. It announces that Demichael J. Peeples of Hampton was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Arenda Wright Allen to 27 months in prison for a scheme to obtain pandemic unemployment benefits. According to court documents, the release states, Peeples submitted false claims to the Commonwealth of Virginia and State of California for Peeples and others, recruited individuals on social media for their identifying information, and often had payments delivered to Peeples's residence. The release describes Peeples as a documented member of the "10K" street gang and states that the court revoked Peeples's bond after the guilty plea for failing to comply with release conditions.

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“Hampton Gang Member Sentenced for Pandemic Unemployment Fraud (Press Release, September 30, 2022).” Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2022-10-05-hampton-gang-member-sentenced-for-pandemic-unemployment-fra-0e6853aa91/, SHA-256 984eda6f02d8d61f3b664cc3b46d8d3c8ea334ff301a2c68dc6a6e7bccc36926.

Full text

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


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                     Friday, September 30, 2022

         Hampton Gang Member Sentenced for Pandemic
                    Unemployment Fraud
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – A Hampton man was sentenced today to 27 months in prison for a fraud
scheme to obtain unemployment benefits made available because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to court documents, Demichael J. Peeples, 27, submitted multiple false unemployment
claims with the Commonwealth of Virginia and State of California. He filed fraudulent claims for
benefits for himself and on behalf of others. In these claims, Peeples falsely represented, among other
things, the applicants’ work history and that they lost their employment as a result of the COVID-19
pandemic. Peeples recruited individuals on social media to provide their personally identifying
information, so he could file fraudulent claims for benefits in their name. In many cases, the defendant
had the benefit payments delivered to his residence and kept the proceeds for himself.

Peeples is a documented member of the “10K” street gang on the Peninsula. While on pretrial release,
he used illegal drugs, failed to seek employment, did not report contact with law enforcement to his
supervising probation officer, and otherwise failed to comply with his conditions of release. In March,
Peeples was evicted from a hotel room where police found a Glock semiautomatic firearm that had a
preliminary match to a shooting that occurred earlier that same day. In May, police were dispatched
to Peeples’s residence after unknown individuals fired 19 rounds at Peeples. After pleading guilty, the
Court revoked his bond and remanded him into the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Damon E. Wood, Inspector in
Charge of the Washington Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Troy Springer, Acting Special
Agent in Charge of the Washington, DC Regional Office, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector
General; Brian Dugan, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office; and Mark Talbot,
Chief of Hampton Police, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Arenda
Wright Allen.

This case was investigated under the leadership and coordination of the Newport News Financial
Crimes Task Force.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys D. Mack Coleman and Devon E.A. Heath prosecuted the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern
District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District
Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:21-cr-66.
Topic(s):                                               USAO - Virginia, Eastern
Coronavirus
Firearms Offenses                                       Contact:
                                                        Press Officer USAVAE.Press@usdoj.gov
Component(s):

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