There are three ways fraudsters usually commit unemployment fraud on purpose. One way is to fill out the application with false information. Another way is to be lazy and don’t look for a job. Lastly, just ignore the requirement to report income if actually working. (Some fraudsters mistakenly think that the government will never notice their intentional error.)
A Pennsylvania man thought he’d try method number three to scam his state’s Department of Labor and Industry. He did not report the wages he received from a full time job, which is a violation of the state’s Office of Unemployment Compensation rules. (If you have a full time job, you obviously can’t collect unemployment benefits.)
The fraudster got away with the ruse for nearly four years before being caught. In all, he collected $102,000 in unemployment compensation benefits he was not entitled to.
The 54-year-old pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining unemployment benefits and will spend a year-and-a-half in prison for his illegal scam. He is also required to pay $89,500 in restitution to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.
Why is it that fraudsters spend so much time and energy working hard to scam a government benefits system? They do so with the promise that easy money often brings – the ability to enjoy life while hardly working. In this case, this man’s plan backfired and his hard work has resulted in hard time.
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