Wesley Chapel Woman, Ghanaian Accomplice, Defraud 100+ in $2M COVID Unemployment Insurance Scam and Identity Fraud

• A federal jury has convicted a 58-year-old woman of duping over 100 individuals nationwide
• Maria Morales teamed with a friend for an identity theft operation, making $2M
• She withdrew the money within a year and later defended that she was manipulated by an accomplice 

A federal jury in Tampa, Florida, has convicted a Wesley Chapel woman of stealing about $2 million in unemployment insurance benefits of over 100 victims through identity theft. Maria Morales, 58, obtained over 100 debit cards issued for the COVID-19 pandemic.

These cards, issued by the state of Nevada, were originally intended as crucial financial support for unemployed individuals across the nation. An accomplice of Morales used stolen personally identifiable information (PII) of individuals from various states to fraudulently file online unemployment benefit applications.

The state of Nevada then issued debit cards in the names of these unsuspecting individuals, which were mailed directly to Morales. The accomplice was identified as a Ghanian man, Nerio Otoniel, with whom Morales maintained an online relationship.

Morales used different ATMs throughout the Middle District of Florida to withdraw money and, within a year, acquired about $2 million.

In her defense, during the trial, Morales argued that she was manipulated by Otoniel; however, the court disallowed that specific line of testimony.

“But she may not elicit testimony about her adjustment disorder with depressive mood or testimony that merely paints her as a nice person,” the court document read. This was because the testimony was deemed irrelevant to whether she intended to commit the fraud. 

While it is not clear how the  PII was initially stolen by the culprits, individuals can take several proactive steps to avoid becoming victims of similar identity theft schemes and cybercrime. These include:

• Vigilantly monitoring all mail for unexpected notices
• Reviewing financial and credit reports regularly
• Protecting Personal Identifying Information (PII)
• Exercising caution with unsolicited digital communications that ask for information

Hence, it is essential to keep an eye out for credit reports, never sharing PII, including Social Security numbers, and not clicking on suspicious links that may act like infostealers. They must also report suspicious activity to every connected organization, like the bank, and report the same to the Federal Trade Commission.