SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Las Vegas residents Ricky Lee Ware, 43, and Kimberly Ann Wallace, 30, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit access device fraud, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.
According to court documents, between July 2020 and January 2021, the defendants conspired to obtain debit cards that allowed them to access unemployment benefits. The unemployment benefits were in the names of people who did not know the defendants. The defendants then used the debit cards to withdraw more than $900,000 in unemployment benefits from ATMs.
The U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas M. Fogg is prosecuting the case.
Ware and Wallace are scheduled to be sentenced by U.S….
Scammers capitalize on major disasters or heart-wrenching stories to solicit donations for non-existent charities. They often use names that are very similar to well-known, legitimate organizations to confuse donors.