Fresno Woman Sentenced to More than Six Years in Prison for $300,000 COVID-19 Pandemic Fraud Crime Spree
Summary
A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of California dated March 27, 2023. It announces that Cecilia Aquino of Fresno was sentenced to six years and three months in prison for submitting over $300,000 in fraudulent unemployment insurance claims and Small Business Administration loan applications during the COVID-19 pandemic. The release states that from June through November 2020 Aquino submitted the claims and applications in seven states using stolen identities, with misrepresentations about the named individuals' work, businesses and pandemic losses. It states that the proceeds went to gambling, rent, shopping and other personal expenditures, and that the case is part of a California COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Strike Force operation.
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“Fresno Woman Sentenced to More than Six Years in Prison for $300,000 COVID-19 Pandemic Fraud Crime Spree.”
Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2023-03-29-fresno-woman-sentenced-to-more-than-six-years-in-prison-for-0778feff1a/
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PRESS RELEASE Fresno Woman Sentenced to More than Six Years in Prison for $300,000 COVID-19 Pandemic Fraud Crime Spree Monday, March 27, 2023 For Immediate Release U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of California FRESNO, Calif. — Cecilia Aquino, 32, of Fresno, was sentenced today to six years and three months in prison for submitting over $300,000 in fraudulent unemployment insurance claims and Small Business Administration (SBA) loan applications during the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. According to court records, from June through November 2020, Aquino went on a crime spree where she submitted fraudulent unemployment insurance claims and loan applications in seven states using stolen identities. The claims and applications contained various misrepresentations, including that the named individuals worked as strippers and owned interior design businesses, and that they lost money because of the pandemic. Aquino used the proceeds of her fraud for gambling, rent, shopping, and other personal expenditures. This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the SBA Office of Inspector General, the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, and the Clovis Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Barton prosecuted the case. This effort is part of a California COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Strike Force operation, one of three interagency COVID-19 fraud strike force teams established by the U.S. Department of Justice. The California Strike Force combines law enforcement and prosecutorial resources in the Eastern and Central Districts of California and focuses on large-scale, multistate pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors. The strike forces use prosecutor-led and data analyst-driven teams to identify and bring to justice those who stole pandemic relief funds. Updated March 27, 2023 Topics CORONAVIRUS FINANCIAL FRAUD Component USAO - California, Eastern
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