WILKES-BARRE. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that on July 8, 2017, United States District Court Judge A. Richard Caputo sentenced Samuel and Steven Borgia to 6 months home-confinement and 1-year probation for conspiring to commit wire fraud in connection with the fraudulent receipt of unemployment benefits. Judge Caputo also ordered that the defendants pay $169,524.33 in restitution to the Federal and State Department of Labor.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, Samuel Borgia, age 52, and Steven Borgia, age 46, owned and operated Home Resource Corporation, a home improvement company in Scranton. From 2009 to 2012, the defendants filed fraudulent claims for unemployment compensation and received unemployment benefits to which they were not entitled. Additionally, the defendants instructed a number of their employees who were employed to falsely report to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor that the employees were not employed in order for the employees to also fraudulently receive unemployment benefits. The defendants and their co-conspirators received more than $150,000 as a result of the scheme and caused more than $300,000 in losses to both the Federal and State Department of Labor.
The Borgia brothers plead guilty to a one-count information pursuant to plea agreements on Nov. 30, 2016.
The case was investigated by the United States Department of Labor, Office of the Inspector General, and the Pennsylvania Department of Labor. Assistant United States Attorney Evan Gotlob is prosecuted the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
