Duo Files 124 Bogus Unemployment Apps, Receives $2.1M In Pay: Feds

INLAND EMPIRE, CA — Two Inland Empire residents were arrested Tuesday on a nine-count federal grand jury indictment alleging they fraudulently obtained more than $2.1 million in COVID-19 relief funds after they filed more than 120 bogus applications for unemployment insurance benefits using stolen identities — including those of California state prisoners.

Lisa Puente, 43, of Rialto, and Arthur Marquez, 53, of San Bernardino, were arraigned Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Riverside. Both are charged with six counts of mail fraud and one count of use of unauthorized access devices. They are also charged with one count each of aggravated identity theft. The duo pleaded not guilty to all charges.

According to the indictment returned Oct. 9 and unsealed Tuesday, federal prosecutors allege that from February 2020 to August 2023, Puente and Marquez filed with the California Employment Development Department fraudulent applications for UI benefits in the names of other people.

The other people included individuals who did not qualify for UI because they were incarcerated in California state prisons and whose personal identifying information was used without their permission.

The applications falsely stated that the named claimants' employment had been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, which triggered eligibility for UI benefits under federal law.

The applications also falsely stated that the claimants resided and had worked in California. Instead, most of the identity theft victims did not live in the state, according to prosecutors.

The applications also used false mailing addresses, bogus prior annual income information, and falsely stated that the named claimants were unemployed, self-employed individuals whose work was adversely impacted by COVID-19.

As a result of the bogus UI applications, EDD authorized Bank of America to issue debit cards in the names of dozens of victims and straw claimants.

Once Marquez and Marquez got their hands on the debit cards, they spent some of the money and withdrew the remaining funds to receive cash.

In total, Puente and Marquez filed at least 124 fraudulent applications for UI benefits, causing losses to EDD and the United States Treasury of approximately $2,136,768, prosecutors said.

If convicted, the defendants would face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for each mail fraud count, up to 10 years in federal prison for the unauthorized access device count, and a mandatory two-year consecutive prison sentence for the aggravated identity theft count.

A Dec. 30 trial date was scheduled for the duo, who both remain free on bond. A federal magistrate judge ordered Puente released on $20,000 bond and ordered Marquez released on $10,000 bond.