(WWJ) A Downriver nurse is facing federal charges for allegedly stealing and selling COVID-19 vaccination cards.
She's one of two Detroit-area residents accused in similar cases announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office on Wednesday.
Federal prosecutors say 37-year-old Bethann Kierczak of Southgate, a register nurse, was arrested Wednesday morning and arraigned Wednesday afternoon on charges of theft of government property and theft or embezzlement related to a healthcare benefit program.
It's alleged, according to the complaint, that Kierczak stole authentic cards from a VA hospital in Detroit, took the vaccine lot numbers needed to make them look legitimate, and then resold the cards to people in metro Detroit.
In the alleged scheme that began back in May, the feds said Kierczak communicated with her buyers using Facebook messenger, and sold the cards for $150 to $200 each.
In a separate case, the U.S. Attorney's Office said 32-year-old Rapheal Jarrell Smiley of Detroit is accused of selling counterfeit COVID-19 vaccination cards. He was also arrested on Wednesday, and was scheduled to appear in federal court.
It is alleged that Smiley ordered the phony cards from two companies in China, and advertised them for sale via his Facebook and Instagram accounts.
Investigations into both cases are ongoing.
“These arrests reflect our deep commitment to protecting the health of our community and preventing this dangerous fraud from affecting our most vulnerable citizens,” said Acting US Attorney Mohsin, in a statement.
“Regardless of whether an individual choses to get vaccinated, we urge everyone to avoid turning to schemes like these to evade vaccination requirements. Importing these cards is a crime. Selling these cards is a crime. We will continue to investigate these crimes and prosecute them accordingly.”
“At a time when Americans eagerly want to return to a normal way of life, these counterfeit vaccine cards undermine our confidence in COVID-19 vaccines,” said Vance Callender, Special Agent in Charge of HSI field offices in Michigan and Ohio. “HSI dedicates significant resources to investigate a wide variety of pandemic-related fraud schemes. This arrest and seizure demonstrates HSI’s ongoing commitment to support the integrity of our public healthcare system by preventing the illegal importation and sale of counterfeit vaccine cards.”
Meanwhile, investigations into these type of crimes by the Attorney General's COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force are ongoing.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 is urged 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 this link.
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