Queens Couple Sentenced in Pandemic Unemployment Insurance Fraud ...

Today, New York State Inspector General Lucy Lang announced the sentencing of a Queens, NY couple who stole more than $380,000 in pandemic unemployment benefits after an investigation revealed the couple used the identities of at least 20 innocent New Yorkers to submit fraudulent unemployment insurance claims.

William Taylor, 33, who previously pled guilty on January 4, 2024, to one count of Conspiracy to Commit Mail and Wire Fraud and one count of Aggravated Identity Theft, was sentenced today by the Honorable Mae A. D'Agostino to a term of imprisonment of 36 months with 2 years of post-release supervision. The defendant was also ordered to pay $315,723 in restitution.

Patricia Clarke, 27, who previously pled guilty on January 4, 2024, to one count of Conspiracy to Commit Mail and Wire Fraud, was sentenced today by the Honorable Mae A. D'Agostino to a term of imprisonment of 12 months and one day with 2 years of post-release supervision. The defendant was also ordered to pay $66,092 in restitution.

A joint investigation by Office of the Welfare Inspector General, the United States Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, Homeland Security Investigations, and the United States Postal Inspection Service discovered that Taylor and Clarke unlawfully obtained and subsequently used the identities of at least 20 New Yorkers to file fraudulent pandemic unemployment insurance claims with the New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL). These fraudulent claims resulted Taylor and Clarke receiving $381,815 in NYSDOL pandemic unemployment insurance benefits to which they were not entitled. During the investigation, both Taylor and Clarke admitted their scheme to law enforcement.

"The abuse of government resources designed to help vulnerable New Yorkers during the COVID-19 Pandemic is unconscionable," said New York State Inspector General Lucy Lang. "Thank you to my team, the U.S. Attorney's Office, and our partners across law enforcement for their work in ensuring that anyone who uses stolen identities in an attempt to defraud critical safety nets such as this will be held accountable."

Inspector General Lang expressed her appreciation to the OIG team responsible for handling this investigation, including Managing Investigator for Welfare Fraud Jason Fazio, Senior Investigative Auditor Katherine Rizzo, Investigative Auditor Kirsten Carroll, Investigative Counsel Alexis Osborne, Investigative Counsel Brandon Riddle, and Investigative Counsel Mark Jordan, under the supervision of Chief of Investigations for the Upstate Region Sherry Amarel and Deputy Inspector General for the Upstate Region Jim Davis.

Inspector General Lang also extended her thanks to the United States Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, Homeland Security Investigations, and United States Postal Inspection Service for their work on this investigation, and United States Attorney for the Northern District of New York Carla B. Freedman and her office for prosecuting this matter.

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