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Suburban Chicago Police Officer Charged With Covid-Relief Fraud
WILLIAM FREDERICK REED allegedly fraudulently obtained Covid-relief loans and then concealed the proceeds in his bankruptcy case.
Suburban Chicago Man Sentenced to More Than Five Years in Prison for $1.5 Million Covid-Relief Fraud
FEROZ JALAL participated in a scheme to defraud banks and the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Suburban Chicago Businessman Charged With Covid-Relief Fraud
FRANCESCO DISTEFANO and a co-defendant allegedly used fraud proceeds to purchase a Lamborghini Huracan, Maserati Ghibli, and Porsche 911.
Chicago Lab Owner Pleads Guilty to $14 Million Covid-19 Fraud Scheme
ZISHAN ALVI caused claims to be submitted to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for Covid-19 tests that were not performed as billed.
Lab Owner Pleads Guilty to $14M COVID-19 Fraud Scheme
An Illinois man pleaded guilty today for his role in a COVID-19 testing fraud scheme.
Former Chief Operating Officer of Covid-19 Testing Kit Company Sentenced to More Than Six Years in Federal Prison for Embezzling $1.85 Million
DENNIS W. HAGGERTY, JR. issued payments from the company’s bank account for services and goods that were never provided.
Suburban Chicago Tax Preparer Convicted of Covid-Relief Fraud
HADI ISBAIH owned Flash Tax Service Inc., a tax preparation business in Bridgeview, Ill.
Illinois Businessman Sentenced to Nine Years in Prison for Fraud and Tax Evasion
JOSEPH J. CIPOLLA JR. was ordered to pay $2 million in restitution to the IRS, State of Illinois, U.S. Small Business Administration, and other entities and individuals.
Chicago Woman Sentenced to Prison for Participating in $16 Million Covid-Relief Fraud
“Our office is committed to rooting out abuse of the relief programs provided by the CARES Act," said Acting U.S. Attorney Morris Pasqual.
Performance Audit of the State’s Response to the COVID-19 Outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home
In this performance audit of the State of Illinois's response to the management of the COVID-19 outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans' Home, the Illinois Office of the Auditor General identified that while the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) was notified of the increasing number of COVID-19 cases at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home beginning on November 1, 2020, they did not identify and respond to the seriousness of the outbreak despite it being a responsibility of the department to provide guidance and monitoring to protect the residents at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home.
Program Audit of the Business Interruption Grant Program
The Illinois Auditor General, conducted a performance audit of the Business Interruption Grant (BIG) program, which was developed under the state's Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) to provide $585 million in economic relief for small businesses hit hardest by COVID-19. Among their findings the Auditor General noted that DCEO allowed, without verification, BIG small business grant applicants to self-certify that they complied with all laws as well as reporting other pandemic funding. The office's analysis found 196 ineligible applicants received $3.42 million in the first...
Owner of Suburban Chicago Insurance Agency Sentenced to Seven Years in Prison for Swindling More Than $1 Million From Clients
DANIEL M. ROSENBAUM owned Alexander & Rosenbaum Financial Group LLC, an insurance agency in Kenilworth, Ill.
Chicago Man Sentenced to Five and a Half Years in Federal Prison for $2.9 Million Covid-Relief Fraud
QUAMDEEN AMUWO defrauded the Small Business Administration’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program.
Former Chief Operating Officer of Suburban Chicago Covid-19 Testing Kit Company Charged With Embezzling at Least $1.8 Million in Company Funds
DENNIS W. HAGGERTY, JR. issued fraudulent payments from his Willowbrook-Ill.-based company’s bank account.
Cook County Man Sentenced in Rockford to More Than Five Years in Prison for Mail Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft
ROBERT CARTER engaged in a scheme to fraudulently obtain more than $1 million in unemployment insurance funds during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Two Illinois Businessmen Charged in $7.8 Million Covid-Relief Fraud
SHARHABEEL SHREITEH, an accountant in Palos Hills, Ill., and TRACY MITCHELL, the owner of a business in Joliet, Ill., allegedly engaged in fraud related to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
Former U.S. Postal Service Employee in Chicago Admits Stealing Stimulus Checks From the Mail
OLIVIA L. BRYANT admitted in a plea agreement that in 2020 and 2021 she stole hundreds of pieces of mail from her route in Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood.
Federal Grand Jury Indicts 19 Central Illinois United States Postal Service Workers for Wire Fraud Related to COVID Relief Funds
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – A federal grand jury has returned indictments against 19 United States Postal Service employees and former employees, charging them with fraud related to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)
Justice Department Announces Results of Nationwide COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Action
The Justice Department announced today the results of a coordinated, nationwide enforcement action to combat COVID-19 fraud, which included 718 enforcement actions – including federal criminal charges against 371 defendants – for offenses related to over $836 million in alleged COVID-19 fraud.
Owner of Area Restaurant Sentenced to the Bureau of Prisons and Ordered to Pay Restitution for Crimes Related to COVID-Relief Funds
PEORIA, Ill. – A Saint Augustine, Illinois man, Michael Lewis Patch, 66, of the 100 block of West Third Street, has been sentenced to 90 days in the Bureau of Prisons, five years of Supervised Release, and to pay more than $64,000 in restitution.
Performance Audit of the Illinois Department of Employment Security Unemployment Insurance Programs
On September 1, 2021, the Legislative Audit Commission adopted Resolution Number 158 requiring a performance audit of the unemployment programs administered by the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) during the period of March 1, 2020, to September 6, 2021. The audit found that overpayments (which include fraud, non-fraud, and identity theft) were an issue in both the regular UI and PUA programs. IDES reported overpayments for FY20 to FY22 that totaled $5.24 billion; regular UI accounted for $2.04 billion and PUA accounted for $3.20 billion. Considering gross benefits associated...
State of Illinois Department of Employment Security: Individual Nonshared Proprietary Fund Financial Statements For the Year Ended June 30, 2022
The audit of the accompanying financial statements of the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund of the State of Illinois, Department of Employment Security Department was performed by RSM US LLP as of and for the year ended June 30, 2022. Based on their audit, the auditors expressed a qualified opinion on the Department's Statement of Net Position and a disclaimer of opinion on the Department's Statements of Revenues, Expenses, and Changes in Net Position and Cash Flows. Among their other findings was material weakness and noncompliance regarding the failure to maintain accurate and complete...
Chicago Man Convicted of $2.7 Million COVID-Relief Fraud
In 2020, QUAMDEEN AMUWO, 41, participated in a scheme to defraud the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program.
Suburban Chicago Businessman Found Guilty of Price Gouging N-95 Masks During Covid-19 Pandemic
KRIKOR TOPOUZIAN, owner of Concord Health Supply in Skokie, Ill., was convicted of violating the Defense Production Act.
Pharmacist Convicted of Stealing and Selling COVID-19 Cards
A federal jury in Chicago convicted an Illinois pharmacist on Friday for stealing and selling COVID-19 vaccination cards.
State of Illinois Department of Employment Security: Individual Nonshared Proprietary Fund Financial Statements For the Year Ended June 30, 2021
The audit of the accompanying financial statements of the State of Illinois, Department of Employment Security Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund was performed by RSM US LLP for the year ended June 30, 2021. Based on their audit, the auditors expressed a disclaimer of opinion on the Department's Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund financial statements. The auditors identified three matters involving the Department's internal controls over financial reporting that they considered to be material weaknesses. Further, the auditors identified three noncompliance matters.
State of Illinois Department of Employment Security: Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund Financial Statements for the Year Ended June 30, 2020
We have audited the accompanying financial statements of the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund (Trust Fund), an individual nonshared proprietary fund of the State of Illinois, Department of Employment Security, as of and for the year ended June 30, 2020. We found that the Department outsourced unemployment benefit claims processing to a service organization for the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program and the corresponding Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation benefits. The system processing these claims had material weaknesses in the design and operation of internal controls and...
Pharmacist Arrested for Selling COVID Vaccination Cards Online
A licensed pharmacist was arrested today in Chicago on charges related to his alleged sale of dozens of authentic Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID-19 vaccination cards on eBay.
Summary Report Digest: Department of Employment Security
We found that the Department failed to implement general Information Technology controls over the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance System, The Department failed to ensure Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claimants met eligibility requirements, The Department did not have sufficient internal control over the determination of accruals for payments related to both the Unemployment Insurance program and the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program.
Audit of the Chicago Department of Public Health COVID-19 Contact Tracing Program: Data Privacy and Cybersecurity
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted an audit of the data privacy and cybersecurity of the Chicago Department of Public Health’s (CDPH) COVID-19 contact tracing program. The objective of the audit was to determine if CDPH managed privacy and cybersecurity risks associated with the collection, storage, and transmittal of COVID-19 contact tracing data in accordance with the City of Chicago’s Information Security and Technology Policies (ISTP) and the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance.