A Haverhill man has been charged with filing a fraudulent Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) claim for a Brazilian resident who was ineligible to receive the benefits.
Julio Roncaly Morais, 41, was indicted on one count of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
According to the charging documents, Morais filed a Massachusetts PUA claim on June 3, 2020, on behalf of a co-conspirator who was living in Brazil at the time.
In the PUA application, Morais allegedly certified under penalty of perjury that the co-conspirator was a resident of Massachusetts and was able and available to work in Massachusetts but was unable to due to the pandemic.
As a result of this claim, the Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance paid a total of $5,202 in benefits before suspending payments due to an inability to reach the co-conspirator.
Morais faces a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.
The charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud each provide for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
Key Facts
- State: Massachusetts
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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