U.S. Department of Labor OIG, Saratoga Springs Man Charged with COVID-19 Relief Unemployment Insurance Fraud (USAO ND-NY 12/21/2020) (2021-01-08)
Summary
A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of New York, dated December 21, 2020, announcing that Markhwan Berning, age 36, of Saratoga Springs, New York, was arraigned on an indictment charging false representation of a social security number. According to the indictment, between May and July 2020 Berning obtained unemployment insurance benefits, including newly created federal pandemic-related benefits, by falsely representing a fake social security number as Berning's own to the New York State Department of Labor. If convicted, Berning faces a maximum of 5 years in prison, up to 3 years of supervised release and a maximum $250,000 fine. Berning appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Christian F. Hummel and was ordered released with conditions.
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“U.S. Department of Labor OIG, Saratoga Springs Man Charged with COVID-19 Relief Unemployment Insurance Fraud (USAO ND-NY 12/21/2020) (2021-01-08).”
Original at www.oig.dol.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/u-s-department-of-labor-oig-saratoga-springs-man-charged-with-covid-19-fd6f3c6653/
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Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Northern District of New York
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, December 21, 2020
Saratoga Springs Man Charged with COVID-19 Relief
Unemployment Insurance Fraud
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Markhwan Berning, age 36, of Saratoga Springs, New York, was arraigned
Friday on an indictment charging him with false representation of a social security number.
The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon and Michael C.
Mikulka, Special Agent in Charge, New York Region, United States Department of Labor, Office of
Inspector General (DOL-OIG).
According to the indictment, between May and July 2020, Berning obtained unemployment
insurance benefits, including newly created federal pandemic-related benefits, by falsely
representing to the New York State Department of Labor a fake social security number as his
own. The charges in the indictment are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent
unless and until proven guilty.
If convicted, Berning faces a maximum of 5 years in prison, a term of supervised release of up to 3
years, and a maximum $250,000 fine. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the
particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other
factors.
Berning appeared on Friday before United States Magistrate Judge Christian F. Hummel, and was
ordered released with conditions.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was signed into law on March 27,
2020. The CARES Act created, among other unemployment insurance benefits, a new temporary
federal program called the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program (FPUC) that
provided an additional $600 weekly benefit to those eligible for regular unemployment insurance
benefits.
The case is being investigated by DOL-OIG, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation
and New York State Department of Labor, Office of Special Investigations, and is being prosecuted
by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua R. Rosenthal.
This case is being investigated as part of the Department of Justice’s COVID Fraud Task Force. To
learn more about the Department’s efforts to stop illegal COVID-19-related activity, visit
www.justice.gov/coronavirus. The public is urged to report suspected fraud schemes related to COVID-
19 to the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) hotline by phone at (1-866-720-5721) or via an
online reporting form available at: www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/webform/ncdf-disastercomplaint-form.
Topic(s): Component(s):
Financial Fraud USAO - New York, Northern
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