HAMPTON ROADS, Va. — COVID-19 relief fraud has cost the country billions of dollars.
The WTKR News 3 Investigative Team continues to follow through on cases in which people are facing new charges, even years after the pandemic hit.
Watch: Total loss from COVID relief fraud could be up to $135B
We uncovered a recent case in Hampton Roads that impacted dozens of victims and cost the public hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Over a year and a half, 51 successful fraudulent claims were filed by a group of suspects, according to federal prosecutors.
Richard Upchurch of Norfolk recently pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud.
He, and others who are not named in the court paperwork, gathered the names, birth dates and social security numbers of their victims then applied for unemployment benefits using their information.
It states most of the crimes happened in Virginia and California, but there were also claims filed in Vermont, Rhode Island and Puerto Rico.
Watch: Virginia inmate worked with 3 on the outside in COVID relief fraud scheme
Prosecutors say they got some funds back after scheme was uncovered, but they say there was a loss of more than $877,000.
“These people go to a lot of trouble to develop these schemes to defraud the government. I guess the good news here is it's catching up with them,” said legal analyst Sonny Stallings.
Authorities caught up with them by looking at security cameras at drive-through ATMs on First Colonial Road and Lynnhaven Parkway in Virginia Beach, according to court records.
Prosecutors examined Upchurch’s text messages. He said he “had over 70 socials,” then went on to say he was “getting 9,500 [dollars] a week."
Watch: Hampton landlord committed fraud to get rent relief benefits during the pandemic, prosecutors say
“Too much money has been stolen from the government in these schemes and this isn't an accident. These people didn't accidentally get it," said Stallings. "It's very sophisticated theft, but it's still theft, and they're still going to pay for it."
Additionally, records state one of the unnamed suspects worked at an assisted living facility in Norfolk. Records say he stole his coworker's personal information then applied for unemployment benefits.
“This is another case where the government was just letting this money go out the door without any basic verification or checking,” said Stallings.
Last January, we spoke to leaders at the Government Accountability Office about unemployment insurance fraud during the pandemic, which they estimated to be between $100 billion and $135 billion.
As for Upchurch, he’s expected to be sentenced this April at the Norfolk Federal Courthouse. Attempts to reach him and his lawyer were unsuccessful.
