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The Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General so far has arrested 29 fraudsters in six “fraud rings” who stole a total of $2.5 million in federal unemployment compensation.
And there are several other investigations ongoing, according to Chief Deputy AG Brian Zarallo, speaking Tuesday in a virtual news conference hosted by the Department of Labor & Industry.
“Fraudsters have been stepping up their efforts to gather Pennsylvanians’ personal information, including usernames, passwords, unemployment compensation personal identification numbers and Social Security numbers,” stated a joint agency news release that accompanied the briefing on Pandemic Unemployment Assistance cheating. “The goal of these scammers is to create fraudulent unemployment program claims or log into existing claims and redirect unemployment benefits payments.”
This Is Not Right : Pennsylvanians Being Hit By Tax Bills Due To Unemployment Fraud wesa.fm - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from wesa.fm Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
PITTSBURGH Richard Bracey was sentenced to 18 months in prison for conspiring to launder drug-trafficking proceeds between 2017 and 2019, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
Bracey, age 44, was sentenced by United States District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan. Judge Ranjan directed that the prison sentence be served consecutively to the federal prison sentence Bracey was serving for first-degree murder at the time of the crime. Judge Ranjan also directed that Bracey serve one year of supervised release following his prison sentence.
Bracey was incarcerated at USP-Lee in Virginia when he conspired to launder the proceeds of the distribution of Schedule I synthetic cannabinoid controlled substances. Such substances have caused severe illness and deaths throughout the United States in recent years.
Updated: 12:07 PM EST February 11, 2021
MAYFIELD, Pa. A Pennsylvania State Police trooper is among four men arrested for alleged involvement in illegal activity at a Lackawanna County gentlemen s club, State Police announced Thursday.
Trooper Robert E. Covington Jr., 48, a 13-year veteran of the police force, was allegedly co-owner of the Sinners Swing Gentlemen s Club in Mayfield Borough, police say.
He, along with the club s other co-owner and two employees, are accused of promoting illicit activity involving prostitution, gambling, and money laundering, according to police.
Covington was assigned to the Bureau of Gaming Enforcement s Pocono Downs Wilkes-Barre Office, State Police said in a press release announcing the charges. He had been on restricted duty during the investigation of the allegations against him and is currently suspended without pay pending resolution of the charges, according to State Police.
A Sweet Valley woman has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison for her role in a methamphetamine-trafficking operation, according to the U.S. Attorneyâs Office.
Amanda Boyle, 37, was sentenced before U.S. District Court Judge Robert D. Mariani last week after previously pleading guilty to conspiring to distribute between 1½ and five kilograms of meth between January 2017 and December 2018.
The investigation was conducted by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Pennsylvania State Police, Kingston police, the Luzerne County Drug Task Force, and the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General investigated the case.
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