A Miami woman has been indicted by a federal grand jury on 16 charges related to an unemployment insurance benefits fraud scheme. Tamika Nicole Jones, 33, of Miami, Florida, faces eight counts of wire fraud, seven counts of aggravated identity theft, and one count of mail fraud. The indictment was unsealed after her arrest in South Florida by Special Agents with the U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG).
Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the indictment alongside Special Agent in Charge Troy W. Springer from DOL-OIG’s National Capital Region.
According to the indictment, unemployment insurance (UI) is a joint state and federal program that provides temporary financial assistance to eligible workers who lose their jobs through no fault of their own. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic beginning in March 2020, several federal programs expanded UI eligibility and increased benefits through initiatives such as the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program and Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation.
In Maryland, applicants for UI benefits submitted online applications providing personal information including name and Social Security Number (SSN), along with self-certification regarding their employment status due to COVID-19-related reasons. The Maryland Department of Labor (MD-DOL) used this information to determine eligibility and distributed approved benefits electronically via debit cards.
The indictment alleges that between May 2020 and June 2021, Jones defrauded State Workforce Agencies—including MD-DOL—by using stolen personal identifying information from victims to submit fraudulent claims for unemployment insurance.
If convicted, Jones could face up to 20 years in federal prison for wire and mail fraud charges. Aggravated identity theft carries a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison that must run consecutively with any other sentence imposed.
Federal sentences are typically less than maximum penalties; sentencing decisions are made by a federal district court judge who considers U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.
The announcement emphasized that an indictment is not a finding of guilt: “Individuals charged by indictment are presumed innocent until proven guilty at a later criminal proceeding.”
The District of Maryland Strike Force is part of five strike forces established nationwide by the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate large-scale COVID-19 relief fraud under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act—a law intended to provide emergency financial support during the pandemic. These strike forces use interagency teams led by prosecutors and data analysts to target organized pandemic relief fraud schemes.
More details about the Department’s response can be found at https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus. Information about suspected COVID-19 fraud can be reported via phone or web form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
U.S. Attorney Hayes commended DOL-OIG for its investigative work and thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared M. Beim for prosecuting the case.
Additional resources on reporting fraud or learning more about priorities can be accessed at https://www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
