Perth Amboy Man Sentenced to 30 Months for Stealing $444,738 in COVID-19 Unemployment Benefits

Newark, NJ — A Middlesex County, New Jersey, man was sentenced to 30 months in prison for stealing over $400,000 in COVID-19 unemployment benefits, announced U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger.

Christopher Valerio, 33, of Perth Amboy, pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud. He was sentenced to 30 months in prison, two years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $444,728 in restitution and forfeiture, said U.S. Attorney Sellinger.

Valerio and his co-conspirators submitted false and fraudulent applications for unemployment insurance benefits to the New York Department of Labor through fictitious online profiles using other individuals’ personally identifiable information without their consent. They obtained debit cards with illegally obtained funds totaling $444,738, which they used for personal gain.

U.S. Attorney Sellinger praised the efforts of Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service in investigating and bringing Valerio to justice.

The District of New Jersey COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Strike Force is one of five strike forces established by the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute COVID-19 fraud. The strike forces focus on large-scale, multi-state pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form. The charges against Jose Tavares, a third conspirator, are merely accusations, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.