Victoria Kates, a 34-year-old resident of New Britain, has admitted to fraudulently obtaining COVID-19 relief funds, according to an announcement by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Marc H. Silverman. Kates pleaded guilty to charges related to the fraudulent acquisition of these funds before U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford.
Court documents and statements revealed that Kates engaged in fraudulent activities between March 2020 and May 2021. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provided pandemic unemployment assistance and federal pandemic unemployment compensation to support Americans during the pandemic. Kates defrauded the Connecticut Department of Labor (CT-DOL) by filing false unemployment claims on behalf of others and took a portion of the payouts as a fee.
One example cited from August 2020 involved Kates submitting a fraudulent application for a friend, overstating their work status and using her home address. The CT-DOL made $27,993 in payments as a result. Kates created fake documents to support these claims.
Additionally, the CARES Act's Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) provided loans for small businesses. In 2021, Kates falsely claimed $16,250 through PPP by overstating her income and submitting fake IRS documentation, eventually also obtaining loan forgiveness through fraudulent means.
Kates pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud, each carrying a possible 20-year prison sentence. Following her guilty plea, Judge Nagala set her sentencing for September 2. Kates was released on a $40,000 bond.
The investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher W. Schmeisser is prosecuting the case.
The Department of Justice continues to encourage individuals with information about COVID-19-related fraud to report it through the National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline or its website.
