Tampa, FL – Mehdi Tazi, a 29-year-old Tampa man, has been sentenced to 5 years in federal prison for his role in a massive COVID-19 related unemployment insurance fraud scheme that bilked the state out of over $1 million.
Tazi’s sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber on Thursday, capping a year-long investigation into the conspiracy, which involved the use of stolen identities to file fake unemployment claims with the state’s workforce agency.
According to court documents, Tazi and his co-conspirators – including Steve Aloysius Moodie Jr., Tyree Wingfield, and Melinda Sue Hernandez – obtained the personal identifying information (PII) of numerous individuals without their knowledge or consent.
Hernandez, a medical assistant at a Tampa Bay area hospital, used her position to gain access to patient PII, which she then shared with Moodie. The group then used the stolen PII to submit thousands of fake unemployment claims to the state, resulting in the transfer of over $1 million in benefits to bank accounts and debit cards issued in the names of others.
Law enforcement estimated the total intended loss caused by the scheme to be between $1.5 million and $3.5 million, making it one of the largest COVID-19 related unemployment insurance fraud cases in the state’s history.
Tazi, Moodie, Wingfield, and Hernandez were all sentenced to varying lengths of time in federal prison, with Tazi receiving the longest sentence of 5 years. The group was also ordered to pay $1,070,647 in restitution to the state.
The case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service and Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Pizzo prosecuted the case.
The COVID-19-related unemployment insurance fraud scheme was made possible by the expansion of unemployment benefits under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act.
The case highlights the ongoing efforts of law enforcement to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud, including the work of the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force, established by Attorney General Merrick Garland in May 2021.
Tazi’s sentence marks a significant victory in the fight against COVID-19 related unemployment insurance fraud, and serves as a reminder that those who seek to take advantage of the system will be held accountable.
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Key Facts
- State: Florida
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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