Maryland State Wire

Today, Alonzo Brown, a 27-year-old resident of Richmond, Virginia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Lydia Kay Griggsby to 45 months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. The charges were related to a scheme defrauding the Maryland Department of Labor (MD-DOL) and California Employment Development Department (CA-EDD). Following his prison term, Brown will serve three years of supervised release. He has been ordered to pay $310,428.08 in restitution and forfeit assets derived from the fraudulent activities.

The announcement was made by Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, alongside Special Agent in Charge Troy W. Springer from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG), and Special Agent in Charge Kareem A. Carter from the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Washington Field Office.

According to court documents, Brown conspired with Michael Cooley and Isiah Lewis from Prince George’s County, Maryland, between June 2020 and March 2021. Together they orchestrated a plan that defrauded individuals and multiple state workforce agencies out of more than $800,000 in unemployment insurance benefits. They successfully obtained over $300,000 using personal identifiable information from over 60 individuals to file online applications in Maryland and California while concealing their identities through anonymous email addresses.

In April, Judge Griggsby sentenced Cooley to 87 months in federal prison for his involvement in the scheme.

This case is part of the District of Maryland COVID-19 Strike Force initiative by the U.S. Department of Justice aimed at tackling COVID-19 related frauds such as those linked with the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act intended for pandemic relief efforts.

For further details on pandemic-related fraud investigations or reporting mechanisms visit justice.gov/coronavirus or contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721.

U.S. Attorney Hayes praised DOL-OIG and IRS-CI's efforts during this investigation and acknowledged Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bijon A. Mostoufi and Jared M. Beim along with Joanna B.N. Huber for their roles in prosecuting this case.