U.S. Department of Labor OIG, 8 Civilian Employees of the Philadelphia Police Department Indicted on Theft and Fraud Charges For Collecting Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (USAO ED-PA 11/23/2021) (2021-12-02)

Summary

A November 23, 2021 press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announcing indictments of eight civilian employees of the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) over Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA). The defendants are Shannon Reynolds, Najah Harrell, Korey Kinard, Keely Maude, Tashika White, Paulette Johnson, Monica Pelzer and Yarelis Feliciano, each charged in a separate Indictment with one count of mail or wire fraud and one count of theft of government funds. Seven are radio dispatchers for the PPD and Johnson is a clerk. The Indictments charge that weekly certifications of unemployment were false because each defendant was employed by the PPD at the time. Assistant United States Attorney Timothy Lanni is prosecuting.

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“U.S. Department of Labor OIG, 8 Civilian Employees of the Philadelphia Police Department Indicted on Theft and Fraud Charges For Collecting Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (USAO ED-PA 11/23/2021) (2021-12-02).” Original at www.oig.dol.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/u-s-department-of-labor-oig-8-civilian-employees-of-the-philadelphia-p-7d017872d7/, SHA-256 277977484b4501dcb140399a9062fc0314583eccad98f21963c801d4a7edbca7.

Full text

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


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                     Tuesday, November 23, 2021

8 Civilian Employees of the Philadelphia Police Department
    Indicted on Theft and Fraud Charges For Collecting
            Pandemic Unemployment Assistance
PHILADELPHIA –United States Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams announced that the following
defendants were charged with fraudulently obtaining emergency unemployment benefits related to
COVID-19. Each of the following defendants was charged with one count of mail or wire fraud and
one count of theft of government funds for obtaining Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA)
funds while working for the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) and also collecting his or her City
paycheck:

Shannon Reynolds, age 25, of Philadelphia, PA; Najah Harrell, age 32, of Philadelphia, PA; Korey
Kinard, age 29, of Philadelphia, PA; Keely Maude, age 23, of Philadelphia, PA; Tashika White, age
50, of Cheltenham, PA; Paulette Johnson, age 55, of Philadelphia, PA; Monica Pelzer, age 45, of
Philadelphia, PA; and Yarelis Feliciano, age 28, Philadelphia, PA.

Seven of the eight defendants are employed as radio dispatchers for the PPD: Reynolds, Harrell,
Kinard, Maude, White, Pelzer and Feliciano. The eighth defendant, Johnson is employed as a clerk
for the PPD. Each defendant is charged in a separate Indictment with the two counts noted above.

On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) was signed
into law. The CARES Act created the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program, which
provides unemployment benefits to individuals not eligible for regular unemployment compensation
or extended unemployment benefits, including individuals, families, and businesses affected by the
COVID-19 pandemic. Eligibility to receive weekly PUA benefits is predicated on an applicant’s
unemployment for reasons related to the pandemic, and it requires that the applicant was able to
work each day and, if offered a job, would have been able to accept it. Once an applicant is approved
to receive benefits, the applicant is required to submit weekly certifications indicating that he or she:
was ready, willing and able to work each day; was seeking full time employment; did not refuse any
job offers or referrals; and had reported any employment during the week and the gross pay or other
payments received.

Each of the defendants is alleged to have submitted weekly certifications stating that they were not
employed and were ready, willing, and able to work each day. The Indictments charge that these
statements were false because each defendant was employed at the time by PPD. According to the
Indictments, as part of the weekly certifications, each defendant also certified that he or she was not
earning any wages or grossly unreported true wages to secure eligibility. However, these statements
are also allegedly false according to PPD payroll records. As a result of these false statements, each
defendant received PUA funds for multiple weeks in which he or she also collected his or her PPD
salary.

“Pandemic Unemployment Assistance funds are intended to help Americans who are not working or
who have experienced dramatically reduced working hours due to the pandemic, not people who are
already gainfully employed,” 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. As alleged, these eight defendants fraudulently obtained funds that could have
helped struggling individuals.”

These cases were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Department of
Labor – Office of Inspector General, and the Philadelphia Police Department with assistance from
the Pennsylvania Department of Industry and Labor. These cases are being prosecuted by Assistant
United States Attorney Timothy Lanni.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by
calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or
via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-
complaint-form.
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

                                                     If you have not done so already, follow
                                                     @USAO_EDPA and @USAttyWilliams on
                                                     Twitter to get the most up-to-date information
                                                     about big cases and community news.

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File: 2021-12-02-8-Civilian-Employees-of-the-Philadelphia-Police-Department-Indicted-on-Theft-and-Fraud-Charges-For.pdf
Size: 110,383 bytes
SHA-256: 277977484b4501dcb140399a9062fc0314583eccad98f21963c801d4a7edbca7
Our copy: 2021-12-02-8-Civilian-Employees-of-the-Philadelphia-Police-Department-Indicted-on-Theft-and-Fraud-Charges-For.pdf
Original: www.oig.dol.gov