⏱ 2 min read
Amy Denise Fields, a 62-year-old Knoxville resident, has been indicted for her role in a scheme to launder fraudulent COVID-19 unemployment insurance benefits. Fields and her co-conspirators submitted fake applications for unemployment benefits to several states during the pandemic, using Fields’ personal info and bank accounts to receive the funds. The scam unfolded in the Eastern District of Tennessee, where Fields lived, and involved the use of Bitcoin ATM machines to launder the cash.
Fields’ co-conspirators would submit the fake applications, and then the benefits would be deposited into Fields’ bank accounts. Knowing the funds were obtained through fraud, Fields would then withdraw the cash and deposit it into Bitcoin ATM machines, further concealing the proceeds of the scam. This complex scheme was designed to promote the ongoing unlawful activity and evade detection.
The indictment, returned by a federal grand jury in Chattanooga on July 28, 2026, charges Fields with conspiracy to commit money laundering and a substantive money laundering offense. If convicted, Fields faces up to 20 years in prison, a term of supervised release of up to three years, a fine of up to $500,000, restitution, and forfeiture.
Fields pleaded not guilty to the charges on August 3, 2026, and was released pending trial, which is set for October 6, 2026. The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee, which has been working to combat COVID-19-related fraud schemes.
📋 Key Facts
- Crime: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Defendant: Tennessee
- Location: TN
- Source: DOJ Press Release
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