This March 28, 2017 photo provided by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation shows Daryol Richmond. Richmond, is one of two California prison inmates who allegedly ran an unemployment scam that sought to defraud the California Economic Development Department of an estimated $25 million. (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation via AP)
Don ThompsonThe Associated PressSACRAMENTO (AP) – An unemployment scam operated out of California prisons sought a record $25 million from the state and U.S. governments, netting more than $5 million that went for vehicles, furniture, handbags and jewelry, federal authorities said Friday, Feb. 11.The $25 million is the largest known single intended haul in California, former U.S. attorney McGregor Scott, who is working with the state Employment Development Department to coordinate investigations into fraud related to pandemic relief, said.Yet it and the $5 million actual loss remains a fraction of the more than $20 billion in unemployment benefits that authorities believe has been stolen since March 2020 as the state approved fraudulent payments in the names of death row
