U.S. Department of Labor OIG, Castro Valley Charged in Pandemic Relief Fraud Scheme (USAO ND-CA 01/28/2022) (2022-02-02)

Summary

A January 28, 2022 press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California announcing an unsealed criminal complaint charging Idowu Hashim Shittu, of Castro Valley, California, with three counts of access device fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1029(a)(5). According to the complaint, between March and the end of July 2020 Shittu used other people's personal information to obtain pandemic-related unemployment benefits, including payments from the Washington State Employment Security Department withdrawn at Bay Area ATMs. The complaint alleges Shittu obtained more than $1 million in unemployment benefits from various state agencies. Shittu appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Sallie Kim, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Paulson and Kevin Rubino are prosecuting.

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Full text

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


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                       Friday, January 28, 2022

  Castro Valley Resident Charged In Pandemic Relief Fraud
                          Scheme
 Complaint Alleges Defendant Fraudulently Obtained More Than $1 Million In
 Unemployment Benefits From Various State Agencies, Including Washington
                   State Employment Security Department
SAN FRANCISCO – A criminal complaint unsealed today in federal court charges Idowu Hashim
Shittu for fraud in connection with a scheme to obtain pandemic-related unemployment benefits
from numerous state agencies, announced United States Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds, United States
Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG) Special Agent in Charge Quentin
Heiden, and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Craig D. Fair.

According to the criminal complaint, between March and the end of July 2020, Shittu, 46, of Castro
Valley, California, engaged in a scheme to use the personal information of other people to obtain
pandemic-related unemployment benefits. The complaint explains that in March of 2020, as part of
the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, the federal government authorized the
payment of hundreds of billions of dollars in unemployment benefits to those affected by the COVID-
19 pandemic and, since then, many state authorities responsible for distributing those
unemployment benefits to their residents have been inundated by fraudulent claims. According to
the complaint’s allegations, Shittu fraudulently submitted requests for such benefits and then used
some of those proceeds for his own personal gain.

The criminal complaint describes three occasions in which Shittu allegedly disposed of fraudulently
obtained benefits. In the first instance, the Washington State Employment Security Department
(ESD) received a request for unemployment benefits on May 5, 2020. The request was submitted in
the name of a resident of Mercer Island, Washington – identified in the complaint only by the initials
“S.O.” The request included the supposed applicant’s correct date of birth and social security
number. The Washington ESD responded to the request by depositing more than $9,000 in an
account linked to a reloadable debit card. A subsequent investigation revealed the account was used
by someone in California. Specifically, a person withdrew cash from several automatic teller
machines located in the Bay Area, including Hayward, Castro Valley, and San Jose. According to the
complaint, S.O. told investigating law enforcement that he was not been in California at any time
during 2020. A Walmart customer fitting Shittu’s description was captured on camera using an
ATM to withdraw cash from that account.

The criminal complaint describes two additional instances of unemployment benefits being issued by
the Washington ESD to Washington residents – one from Seattle and the other from Olympia – after
which ATMs in the Bay Area were used to withdraw that money from the accounts or the proceeds
from those accounts were spent in Bay Area stores. In each case, a person fitting Shittu’s description
was photographed engaging in transactions relating to the accounts. According to the complaint,
Shittu fraudulently obtained more than $1 million in unemployment benefits from various state
agencies, including the Washington ESD.

In sum, the complaint charges Shittu with three counts of access device fraud, in violation of 18
U.S.C. § 1029(a)(5). Shittu faces a maximum statutory penalty of up to 15 years in prison for each
count. In addition, a court may order restitution, fines, a period of supervised release, and other
penalties; however, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court only after
consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing imposition of a
sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.

The charges contained in the criminal complaint are mere allegations. As in any criminal case, the
defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

Shittu made his initial federal court appearance today before United States Magistrate Judge Sallie
Kim. Magistrate Judge Kim scheduled Shittu’s next court appearance for Monday, January 31,
2022.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Paulson and Kevin Rubino are prosecuting the case with the
assistance of Soana Katoa and Mark DiCenzo. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the
U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Topic(s):                                              Component(s):
Financial Fraud                                        USAO - California, Northern


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