U.S. Department of Labor OIG, Former Federal Inmate Sentenced to Nearly Three Years For Fraudulently Collecting PUA Funds on Behalf of Incarcerated Individuals (USAO ED-PA 07/21/2022) (2022-07-25)

Summary

Press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, dated July 21, 2022, announcing that Brandon Segers of Philadelphia was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison, 3 years of supervised release, and $142,069 in restitution for fraudulently obtaining pandemic unemployment benefits. According to the release, Segers and others submitted false PUA applications and weekly certifications claiming that prison inmates had lost employment because of the pandemic. It states that Segers pleaded guilty in April 2022 to charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States, and theft of government money. Co-defendant Michael Matthews was due to be sentenced on July 22, 2022, and co-defendant Dionne Segers' case is pending.

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“U.S. Department of Labor OIG, Former Federal Inmate Sentenced to Nearly Three Years For Fraudulently Collecting PUA Funds on Behalf of Incarcerated Individuals (USAO ED-PA 07/21/2022) (2022-07-25).” Original at www.oig.dol.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/u-s-department-of-labor-oig-former-federal-inmate-sentenced-to-nearly-80afaac149/, SHA-256 5c485d329ead7edbf2c71bfb64c28632e920e004cb7313023dc37a9b8036769b.

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                                       Department of Justice

                                         U.S. Attorney’s Office

                                   Eastern District of Pennsylvania

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                   Thursday, July 21, 2022



   Former Federal Inmate Sentenced to Nearly Three Years
     For Fraudulently Collecting PUA Funds on Behalf of
                 Incarcerated Individuals
PHILADELPHIA –United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Brandon Segers,
34, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison, 3 years of supervised
release, and was ordered to pay $142,069 in restitution for fraudulently applying for and obtaining
emergency unemployment benefits related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, Segers and
others submitted false applications claiming that prison inmates lost employment as a result of the
pandemic, and false weekly certifications that inmates were available to work full-time despite their
incarceration.

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.

In April 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud,
wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States, and theft of government money. As part of his
guilty plea, Segers acknowledged that applications were filed on behalf of inmates who did not lose
their job due to COVID. Co-defendant and incarcerated individual, Michael Matthews, transmitted
the necessary inmate information for the filing of PUA applications to Segers, a former federal
inmate who was previously incarcerated with Matthews, via phone and email. Segers would then file
the fraudulent applications and weekly certifications in the name of Matthews and other inmates
Matthews provided. Segers compensated Matthews for providing the inmate information by
depositing money into his federal prison commissary account. Matthews previously pleaded guilty to
related charges and is due to be sentenced on July 22, 2022. Co-defendant Dionne Segers’ case is
pending.

“Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and small business loan funds are intended to help working
Americans and small business owners continue to pay their bills and make ends meet, even when
revenues have dropped dramatically due to the pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “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. Segers and Matthews fraudulently obtained
thousands of dollars in funds that could have helped struggling businesses and individuals.”
“Today, Brandon Segers has been held accountable for using deceit and fraud to line his pockets with
PUA funds,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Yury Kruty. “This is a warning
to those out there who think the PUA program is a slush fund. IRS CI, along with our partners,
remains committed to investigating those who fraudulently target the PUA program.”

This case was investigated by the United States Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General,
and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. The case is 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):
Financial Fraud
Component(s):
USAO - Pennsylvania, Eastern
Contact:
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA 615 Chestnut
Street, Suite 1250 Philadelphia, PA 19106 JENNIFER CRANDALL Media Contact 215-861-8300 If
you have not done so already, follow @USAO_EDPA on Twitter to get the most up-to-date
information about big cases and community news.

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Our copy: 2022-07-25-Former-Federal-Inmate-Sentenced-to-Nearly-Three-Years-For-Fraudulently-Collecting-PUA-Funds-on-Beha.pdf
Original: www.oig.dol.gov