A Seaside, Oregon, woman was sentenced on April 15 to federal prison for submitting fraudulent pandemic unemployment applications and causing the government to pay her over half a million dollars in benefits.
Tamara Fulmer, 48, received a sentence of 28 months in federal prison and three years of supervised release. She was also ordered to pay $581,283 in restitution after pleading guilty to theft of government property. The sentencing follows an investigation into her use of personal information from 27 individuals she claimed as employees to fraudulently apply for pandemic unemployment insurance benefits between May 2020 and October 2021.
Scott E. Bradford, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, said, “Fraudsters who steal benefits are not just stealing from the government – they are depriving other Oregonians who depend on those benefits to live. Our office will continue to prioritize and prosecute theft of government funds.”
According to court documents, Fulmer deposited at least 236 checks totaling nearly $69,000 into her own account and cashed many more at a gas station without the applicants’ knowledge or permission. She also submitted her own fraudulent application while falsely claiming she had not received disability payments since 2004.
Anthony P. D’Esposito, Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General said: “This case sends a clear message: those who attempt to defraud government programs will be held accountable. Tamara Fulmer stole nearly $600,000 from the unemployment insurance program at a time when Americans needed those funds most... No fraud is too large or too small.”
The case was investigated by several agencies including the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Meredith D.M. Bateman and Ethan G. Bodell.
Bradford has previously served as Chief of the White Collar Unit and Acting Chief of the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section according to the official website. The U.S. Attorney’s office operates under the Department of Justice as one among ninety-three such offices nationwide according to its official website. It maintains offices in Portland, Eugene and Medford with a staff count totaling one hundred seven people according to its official website.
The office engages in community outreach efforts across Oregon as reported by its official website, seeking justice through representing civil and criminal matters while fostering trust in the federal judicial system according to its official website.
On April 7, 2026, the Department of Justice announced creation of its National Fraud Enforcement Division aimed at investigating misuse or theft involving taxpayer dollars—a move supporting President Trump’s Task Force chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance against waste within federal benefit programs.
