Menifee Woman Pleads Guilty In COVID-19 Relief Fraud Case

Menifee Woman Pleads Guilty In COVID-19 Relief Fraud Case

by Contributing Editor

A Riverside County woman pleaded guilty Wednesday to a federal criminal charge for fraudulently obtaining more than $500,000 in coronavirus-related unemployment benefits for herself.

Cara Marie Kirk-Connell, 32, of Menifee, pleaded guilty in Los Angeles to a single federal charge of credit card fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

U.S. District Judge Andre Birotte Jr. scheduled an April 9 sentencing hearing, at which time Kirk-Connell will face up to 10 years in federal prison.

According to her plea agreement, from May to October, Kirk-Connell knowingly used 50 unauthorized access devices. Specifically, she used stolen personal identifiable information, such as dates of birth and Social Security numbers, to apply for unemployment insurance benefits in the names of other people.

Based upon Kirk-Connell’s false and fraudulent applications, she obtained from the California Employment Development Department multiple debit cards that contained more than $500,000 in coronavirus-related unemployment benefits to which she was not entitled, the plea agreement states.

Kirk-Connell admitted she used contacts who could access the dark web to purchase stolen identities that she used to then file fraudulent claims with EDD. She further admitted to watching YouTube videos that instructed viewers on how to commit EDD fraud, prosecutors said.

When Murietta police arrested Kirk-Connell on Sept. 11 during a traffic stop, she possessed eight EDD debit cards in other people’s names and, the day before her arrest, Kirk-Connell used fraudulently obtained EDD debit cards to withdraw more than $1,000 in cash, court papers show.

When federal law enforcement arrested Kirk-Connell on Oct. 9, she possessed in her purse four EDD debit cards in victims’ names, four additional debit cards in victims’ names in her car trunk, and about $10,000 in cash, according to the plea agreement.

EDD records showed that the cards and identities that Kirk-Connell possessed had been used to apply for and authorize $534,149 in coronavirus-related unemployment benefits from California’s EDD program, of which nearly $270,000 had already been spent, according to an affidavit filed with a criminal complaint in this case.

The California EDD distributes unemployment benefits under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, passed by Congress in March. The CARES Act expanded unemployment benefits to cover those who were previously ineligible, including business owners, self-employed workers, and independent contractors, who were put out of business or significantly reduced their services because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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All credit goes to Contributing Editor
Originally published on https://mynewsla.com