(WWJ) Four people — including a Warren woman, two Detroit men, and a current federal prisoner — are facing charges in a large-scale Unemployment Insurance benefit fraud scheme.
Acting U.S. Attorney Saima S. Mohsin earlier this week announced the case against Brittany Levett Witherspoon, 25, of Warren. Daeshawn Tamar Posey, 25, of Detroit; Chaz Duane Shields, 33, of Detroit; and Cortney Shaquan Shields, 30, a current federal prisoner incarcerated at in Allenwood, Pennsylvania.
All four are charged in a criminal complaint with mail fraud, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.
Posey and Witherspoon were arrested Tuesday in the metro Detroit area; Chaz Shields was arrested Monday in the Boston area; and Cortney Shields remains in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons (BOP).
According to the complaint, Posey, Chaz Shields, Cortney Shields, and Witherspoon filed over 240 claims for fraudulent unemployment insurance benefits in their own names and others', using other people's Social Security Numbers, across at least 20 states and territories.
The feds say this resulted more than $725,000 in losses to the state of Michigan and more than $1,500,000 in losses to California.
It's alleged that all four deposited their ill-gotten funds in bank accounts and onto pre-paid debit cards, and that Posey and Chaz Shield used some of the money to buy multiple luxury vehicles.
"Taxpayer money diverted into the pockets of criminals means less money going to Michiganders who need help getting through this difficult time," said Mohsin, in a statement. "These arrests reflect our ongoing commitment to investigating these schemes and bringing the people who commit these crimes to justice."
This investigation is ongoing.
"An important mission of the Office of Inspector General is to investigate allegations relating to unemployment insurance fraud. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate these types of allegations," added Irene Lindow, Special Agent-in-Charge, Chicago Region, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General.
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 this link.
