WORCESTER, MA – William Cordor, 26, of Leicester, Massachusetts, has confessed to a brazen scheme exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic, pleading guilty in federal court to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, four counts of wire fraud, and four counts of aggravated identity theft. The indictment, initially filed April 1, 2021, and later amended on July 12, 2021, to include co-conspirator Destinee Snay, reveals a calculated effort to siphon funds from pandemic relief programs.
Cordor’s fraud began as early as May 2020, targeting the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program in Nevada. He didn’t bother with honest work; instead, he allegedly filed numerous fraudulent claims using stolen personal information – names, Social Security numbers, the works – belonging to individuals he had no right to represent. While the State of Nevada flagged the suspicious activity and ultimately denied the claims, Cordor didn’t stop there.
He quickly moved onto a second, equally audacious scheme, applying for COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) offered by the Small Business Administration (SBA). Again leveraging stolen identities, Cordor successfully obtained a loan under false pretenses. This time, however, the funds weren’t intercepted; Cordor allegedly used the ill-gotten gains to finance a lavish Florida vacation, complete with plane tickets, hotel stays, fancy restaurants, entertainment, and shopping sprees. A far cry from helping small businesses survive the pandemic.
This isn’t the first time Cordor has faced scrutiny for unemployment fraud. Back in May 2020, he surrendered $79,000 in his bank account, representing proceeds from a separate unemployment fraud scheme in Massachusetts, *before* initiating the fraudulent claims in Nevada. This suggests a pattern of behavior, a willingness to repeatedly exploit the system for personal gain, and a calculated attempt to cover his tracks.
If sentenced to the maximum, Cordor faces a grim future. The charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud each carry a potential sentence of up to 20 years in prison, along with up to three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. Adding insult to injury, the aggravated identity theft charges mandate a consecutive two-year prison sentence, another year of supervised release, and another $250,000 fine. Sentencing will be determined by a federal district court judge, taking into account U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other relevant factors.
The investigation was a joint effort led by Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell, with key contributions from Jonathan Mellone, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and Frederick J. Regan, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service, Boston Field Office. The Leicester and Marlboro Police Departments also provided valuable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John T. Mulcahy and Danial Bennett are prosecuting the case as part of the Department of Justice’s COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force, established to combat pandemic-related fraud. More information on the DOJ’s pandemic response can be found at https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Related Federal Cases
- William Cordor, Pandemic Relief Wire Fraud, MA 2024 · Massachusetts
- William Cordor, Pandemic Relief Wire Fraud, MA 2024 · Massachusetts
- Luczor Fertilien, ID Theft Tax Scams, FL 2024 · Massachusetts
- Diana Nguyen, Mail Fraud Scheme, Florida 2024 · Texas
- Marlene Barkheimer, FDIC Advisory Committee Appointment, Washington… · Kentucky
Key Facts
- Agency: U.S. Secret Service
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Press Release
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