Rockville pair sentenced for more than $200K in identity, insurance fraud during pandemic

ROCKVILLE, Md. ( DC News Now ) — Attorney General Anthony Brown announced Tuesday that two people from Rockville were sentenced to several years in prison for filing fraudulent unemployment insurance claims during the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a release, Cindy Thompson Boadu and Kwame Boadu pled guilty in February to Theft by Deception, with a value over $100,000, Conspiracy to Commit Theft by Deception with a value of over $100,000, and four counts of Identity Fraud.

The Attorney General’s office said this came after the pair filed at least 38 fraudulent unemployment claims between June and July 2020. The two filed these claims when the federal government allocated billions of dollars in funding to states for people who were unemployed during the pandemic.

According to officials, the Boadus filed these claims using 38 people’s personal identification information, causing the Maryland Department of Labor (MDOL) to distribute more than $500,000 in benefits to bank cards.

The Attorney General’s office said the Rockville pair listed their address on the claims so they could receive the cards and spend over $200,000 for personal benefit.

A judge in the Baltimore Circuit Court sentenced the pair to serve nine years and 10 months in prison. Cindy and Kwame were also sentenced to an additional five years, but this sentence was suspended. They must complete five years of probation and pay $222,035.34 in restitution to the MDOL.

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