Why not at least buy the Corvette if you’re going to commit a crime?
According to a report from The Daily Wire, twin brothers in Maryland ran a covid funds scheme, using some of that money to buy a 2020 Chevy Camaro. Authorities say the men collected over $1 million in unemployment insurance benefits and loans handed out by the federal government to help those struggling with the government-imposed shutdowns. However, those funds were obtained fraudulently and now the brothers are in hot water.
The brothers, Jerry and Jaleel Phillips, who are both 24 are facing up to 20 years in federal prison for wire fraud. Jerry is facing a charge of aggravated identity theft. All charges were announced recently by U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron for the District of Maryland along with officials from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and Department of Labor.
This is far from the first time we’ve highlighted someone fraudulently obtaining covid relief funds to buy a cool car, if not multiple. And we doubt this is the last case we feature.
Investigators were able to use the brother’s IP addresses to link them to the fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Economic Injury Disaster loan (EIDL), and unemployment insurance claims filed online. To get so much money, authorities say the brothers created fake aliases and stole identification info from real people, plus used fake or closed corporations.
In addition to the 2020 Camaro, the brothers also bought a bunch of cryptocurrency and furniture. They transferred the funds from one bank account created using the fake aliases to another, likely to throw off auditors. Maybe they thought that wouldn’t raise any red flags, but they were of course wrong.
We get it: once you get a huge windfall of cash it’s tempting to buy a cool car, maybe your dream ride. The only thing is you should earn the tidal wave of money through honest means instead of turning to criminal activity and stealing it. Ultimately, these people get caught, even if they think they got away with it for a while, and they end up paying dearly for their schemes.
Source: The Daily Wire
