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Patrick Green Sentenced to 14 Months for Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, Tucson AZ, 2023
Tucson, AZ – In a brazen scheme to defraud the state of Arizona, Patrick Green, 48, of Longview, Texas, was sentenced to 14 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $226,146 in restitution for his role in a COVID-19 relief fraud scheme.
Green pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, making him the final co-conspirator to be sentenced in this case. His wife, Bethany Helene Green, 46, of Longview, Texas, and Jonathan Blake, 30, of Tucson, Arizona, also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and were sentenced to 37 months and six months in prison, respectively.
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government added $600 per week in federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) to the states’ standard unemployment payments. Bethany Green devised a scheme to apply for Arizona unemployment assistance and the additional PUA funds on behalf of inmates at the Pima County Jail who were not entitled to receive unemployment payments.
Green conspired with inmates, including his husband, Patrick Green, and Jonathan Blake, to apply for benefits on their behalf. The inmates provided their personal identifying information, which Bethany Green used online to fraudulently apply and obtain unemployment benefits. She charged the inmates a fee, typically $1,000, to complete the online unemployment applications and an additional weekly fee of $100 to file the weekly certifications necessary to continue the unemployment payments.
The scheme defrauded the Arizona Department of Economic Security of $226,146 in false unemployment claims. The United States Department of Labor-Office of Inspector General, Department of Homeland Security-Office of Inspector General, and Arizona Department of Economic Security-Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation in this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Sue Feldmeier, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution. Patrick Green’s sentence brings closure to this case, and we hope it serves as a warning to those who would seek to exploit the system for personal gain.
CASE NUMBER: CR-22-01664-TUC-JCH (BGM)-1
RELEASE NUMBER: 2023-133_Green
Key Facts
- State: Arizona
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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