U.S. Department of Labor OIG, Florida Man Sentenced to 42 Months in Prison for Fraudulently Obtaining more than $1.5 Million in Unemployment Benefits and EIDL Loans (USAO D-NJ 03/27/2024) (2024-04-03)

Summary

Press release 24-111 from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey, dated March 27, 2024, announcing that Michael Blanc of Miami, Florida, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Michael A. Shipp in Trenton federal court to 42 months in prison after pleading guilty to an information charging wire fraud. According to documents filed in the case, Blanc and others applied for unemployment insurance benefits and EIDLs in others' names without their knowledge or consent and provided false information to state workforce agencies and the SBA. The release states that Blanc and others obtained more than $1.5 million through the scheme. Judge Shipp also imposed three years of supervised release and ordered $1.7 million in restitution.

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“U.S. Department of Labor OIG, Florida Man Sentenced to 42 Months in Prison for Fraudulently Obtaining more than $1.5 Million in Unemployment Benefits and EIDL Loans (USAO D-NJ 03/27/2024) (2024-04-03).” Original at www.oig.dol.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/u-s-department-of-labor-oig-florida-man-sentenced-to-42-months-in-pris-2c9f67eaf6/, SHA-256 379f413dce869d89e6d8157be8b7e94d711a44c973313c22aad511106aff5daa.

Full text

PRESS RELEASE

Florida Man Sentenced to 42
Months in Prison for Fraudulently
Obtaining more than $1.5 Million in
Unemployment Benefits and EIDL
Loans
Wednesday, March 27, 2024

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Jersey

NEWARK, N.J. – A Florida man was sentenced today to 42 months in prison for illegally
obtaining more than $1.5 million in government benefits, U.S. Attorney Philip R.
Sellinger announced.

Michael Blanc, 34, of Miami, Florida, pleaded guilty on Sept. 13, 2024, before U.S. District
Judge Michael A. Shipp in Trenton federal court on to an information charging him with
wire fraud. Judge Shipp imposed the sentence today in Trenton federal court.

“Michael Blanc today learned the cost of taking advantage of
government programs that were specifically designed to provide
needed financial assistance to Americans during the COVID-19
pandemic. Combatting pandemic fraud in all of its forms is a top
priority for this office and our law enforcement partners. We stand
ready with our law enforcement partners to root out those who have
exploited the suffering of others to line their own pockets.”
U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger

According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court:
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is a federal law designed
to provide emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering the economic effects
of the COVID-19 pandemic. It expanded states’ ability to help many workers impacted
by COVID-19, including for workers who are not ordinarily eligible for unemployment
insurance benefits. The CARES Act also enabled the Small Business Association (SBA) to
offer funding through the COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) program to
business owners negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Blanc and others applied for unemployment insurance benefits in others’ names without
their knowledge or consent and provided false information to induce state workforce
agencies to approve those applications. He and others applied for EIDLs in others’
names without their knowledge or consent and provided false information in the
applications to induce the SBA to approve the loan applications. Blanc and others
obtained more than $1.5 million through their fraudulent scheme.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Shipp sentenced Blanc to three years of supervised
release and ordered him to pay $1.7 million in restitution.

U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of
Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Mellone, in
New York, and the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, under the
direction of Special Agent in Charge is Scott Moffit, Cybercrime Investigations Division,
with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. He also thanked the FBI, Miami
Division, and the New Jersey Department of Labor & Workforce Development for their
assistance.

The government is represented by Senior Trial Counsel Andrew Kogan of the U.S.
Attorney’s Office Cybercrime Unit in Newark.

Updated March 27, 2024

Topic
CORONAVIRUS
Component
USAO - New Jersey
Press Release Number: 24-111

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File: 2024-04-03-Florida-Man-Sentenced-to-42-Months-in-Prison-for-Fraudulently-Obtaining-more-than-1-5-Million-in-Un.pdf
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SHA-256: 379f413dce869d89e6d8157be8b7e94d711a44c973313c22aad511106aff5daa
Our copy: 2024-04-03-Florida-Man-Sentenced-to-42-Months-in-Prison-for-Fraudulently-Obtaining-more-than-1-5-Million-in-Un.pdf
Original: www.oig.dol.gov