Plea agreements reached in UI benefits fraud cases

TWO SEPARATE plea agreements for cases involving unemployment insurance benefits fraud have been reached, restoring nearly $36,000 for the state in restitution, according to Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin. / COURTESY R.I. ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE
TWO SEPARATE plea agreements for cases involving unemployment insurance benefits fraud have been reached, restoring nearly $36,000 for the state in restitution, according to Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin. / COURTESY R.I. ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE

PROVIDENCE – Two separate plea agreements for cases involving unemployment insurance benefits fraud have been reached, restoring nearly $36,000 for the state in restitution, according to Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin.

“Unemployment fraud is not a victimless crime – it causes business owners to pay more in unemployment insurance taxes, and it damages the integrity of a safety net program that many struggling Rhode Islanders rely upon. Fraudulently collecting unemployment insurance benefits is no different than picking the pockets of small business owners – it’s stealing, plain and simple,” Kilmartin said in a statement.

Pedro Diaz, 40, last known address of 374 Webster Ave., Cranston, recently pleaded nolo contendere before Providence Superior Court Magistrate Patrick Burke to one count of obtaining money under false pretenses for collecting more than $19,000 in unemployment insurance benefits while he was working and failed to report his wages.

Diaz was sentenced to six years probation and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $19,010 to the state.

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Had the case proceeded to trial, the state was prepared to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that between June 10, 2006, and May 5, 2012, Diaz failed to report any of his weekly earnings to the R.I. Department of Labor and Training when he called into the voice response system to authorize his weekly benefits, according to a news release.
He was working for Spectator Management Group/Rhode Island Convention Center while collecting unemployment benefits, Kilmartin said.
Katrina C. Roy, 33, last known address of 35 River St., Cranston, pleaded nolo contendere before Burke to one count of obtaining money under false pretenses for collecting nearly $18,000 in unemployment insurance benefits while she was working full time for Lifespan Corp.
Roy was sentenced to 10 years probation and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $17,924 to the state, according to Kilmartin.

Kilmartin said the state was prepared to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that between Dec. 25, 2010, and Jan. 7, 2012, Roy failed to report any of her weekly earnings to the DLT when she called into the voice response system to authorize her weekly benefits.

Through its partnership with the state Department of Labor and Training, the Office of Attorney General has secured restitution of nearly $500,000 for the state since 2013 as a result of pleas reached in cases of unemployment insurance benefits fraud and workers compensation fraud.

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