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Lakeia Simone Grant, aka Lakeia Shepperd, 40, of Newport News, was sentenced to over seven years in prison for COVID era unemployment insurance fraud scheme.

The government estimates that the overseas scammers stole over $1 million.

In a coordinated arrest by several law enforcement agencies, three defendants were arrested today for their roles in a Covid-fraud scheme targeting the California Employment Development Department.

Jaime Ornelas, 27, formerly of Modesto, was sentenced today to three years and one month in prison and ordered to pay $150,000 in restitution for conspiracy to commit mail fraud arising from fraudulently submitted unemployment insurance benefits

ABINGDON, Va. – Josef Ludwig Brown, one of the leaders of a 17 defendant conspiracy to defraud the United States, commit program fraud, and commit mail fraud in connection with a scheme to file fraudulent claims for pandemic unemployment benefits was sentenced last week to 35 months in federal prison.

A Columbia, Mo., man who ran a scheme to defraud insurance companies through staged accidents and who fraudulently applied for COVID-19 relief funds was sentenced in federal court today for conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud and aggravated identity theft.

ABINGDON, Va. – An additional five of the 17 defendants charged with conspiring to defraud the United States, commit program fraud, and commit mail fraud in connection to a scheme involving the filing of fraudulent claims for pandemic unemployment benefits, were sentenced this week in U.S. District Court in Abingdon.

Darmani Hawkins, 21, of Aurora, was sentenced to 60 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud; conspiracy to commit bank fraud; and mail theft as part of schemes to fraudulently obtain COVID-era state unemployment benefits and, separately, to steal checks from the mail, alter them, and deposit them.

A South Bay man who provided lifestyle and personal development coaching to students in public schools through a non-profit he founded pleaded guilty today to fraudulently applying for millions of dollars in COVID-19 jobless benefits, including by using stolen identities.