A Rockville family pleaded guilty to felony charges for filing at least 38 fraudulent unemployment insurance claims during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Maryland Attorney General’s Office announced Tuesday.
Kelvin Konadu Ntim Boadu and his parents, Cindy Thompson Boadu and Kwame Boadu, used the names of identify fraud victims between June and July 2020 to receive more than $200,000 in benefits on debit cards from the Maryland Department of Labor.
The defendants used the benefits — part of the billions in federal funding allocated to residents who were suddenly unemployed due to the pandemic — for their “personal benefit,” the Attorney General’s Office said.
The three family members each pleaded guilty to one count of theft by deception, with value over $100,000, one count conspiracy to commit theft by deception with a value of over $100,000 and four counts of identity fraud.
A Baltimore City Circuit Court judge will sentence Kelvin Konadu Ntim Boadu on Feb. 29 and sentencing for Kwame and Cindy Boadu is set for July 22. The three will be required to pay about $222,000 in restitution to the Maryland Department of Labor.
Related:
3 Rockville Residents Indicted for Filing False Unemployment Claims During Pandemic
