U.S. Department of Labor OIG, West Warwick Man Indicted in Unemployment Fraud Scheme (USAO D-RI 03/30/2022) (2022-03-30)

Summary

A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Rhode Island, dated March 30, 2022, announcing that Richard Allen of West Warwick was arraigned in U.S. District Court and pled not guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud, five counts of aggravated identity theft and two counts of theft of government money. Charging documents allege that Allen and co-conspirators used stolen personal identifying information to file for COVID-related unemployment benefits in states including Ohio, Massachusetts, Arizona and Texas, and that Allen sent part of the funds to co-conspirators, including via Bitcoin. Department of Labor OIG databases show at least $58,734 in benefits mailed to Allen's address. The indictment also alleges that Allen fraudulently received Social Security Administration payments.

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Full text

                                      Department of Justice
                                         U.S. Attorney’s Office
                                       District of Rhode Island


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                     Wednesday, March 30, 2022

      West Warwick Man Indicted in Unemployment Fraud
                         Scheme
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A West Warwick man was arraigned on Monday in U.S. District Court on
charges contained in a federal indictment alleging that he participated in a conspiracy to use the
stolen identities of others to gain COVID related unemployment insurance benefits, announced
United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha and Rhode Island Attorney General Peter F. Neronha.

Richard Allen, 56, pled not guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud, five counts of aggravated
identity theft, and two counts of theft of government money.

Charging documents allege that Allen and other members of the conspiracy used stolen personal
identifying information of other individuals, to file for COVID-related unemployment benefits. It is
alleged that fraudulent applications were filed with agencies in multiple states, including Ohio,
Massachusetts, Arizona, and Texas. Allen and co-conspirators are alleged to have listed addresses
associated with Allen to which benefit payments by check or debit card should be mailed.

Charging documents allege that Allen communicated with co-conspirators to activate benefit debit
cards; withdrew funds from the debit cards; and sent a portion of the funds to co-conspirators,
including via Bitcoin transactions. U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General databases
show that checks and debit cards in the names of other persons with at least $58,734 in
unemployment and expanded COVID benefits were mailed to Allen’s address.

The indictment also alleges that Allen, while conspiring to and receiving debit cards and checks with
fraudulent unemployment insurance benefits, also fraudulently received payments from the Social
Security Administration.

A federal indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until
proven guilty. A defendant’s sentence will be determined by a federal district judge after
consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

This case, as well as other instances of criminal activity related to fraudulent applications for
pandemic-related unemployment insurance benefits are being investigated jointly by the FBI, the
Rhode Island State Police, and the U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General. Cases are
jointly reviewed, charged, and prosecuted by a team of prosecutors that include Assistant U.S.
Attorneys Denise M. Barton, Stacey P. Veroni, and G. Michael Seaman, and Rhode Island Assistant
Attorney General John M. Moreira, chief of the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Public Integrity
Unit.

United States Attorney Cunha and Attorney General Neronha thank the Social Security
Administration, Office of Inspector General for their assistance in the investigation of this matter.

Rhode Islanders who believe their personal identification has been stolen and used to fraudulently
obtain unemployment benefits are urged to contact the Rhode Island State Police
at financialcrimes@risp.gov or the FBI Providence office at (401) 272-8310.
On May 17, 2021, the United States Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement
Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across
government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force
bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal
actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among
other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying
resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and
harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on
the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

 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 (NCDF) 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:
Coronavirus                                          Jim Martin (401) 709-5357
Financial Fraud
                                                     Press Release Number:
Component(s):                                        22-52
USAO - Rhode Island


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