$400K Unemployment Fraud Plea For Gloucester County Man: Officials

PAULSBORO, NJ – A Gloucester County man admitted this week that he illegally obtained more than $400,000 in unemployment insurance benefits, federal officials said.

Willie Carter, 23, of Paulsboro, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Reneé Marie Bumb to an information charging him with wire fraud Tuesday, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.

From July to October 2020, Carter submitted fraudulent unemployment insurance benefit applications to several states, Sellinger said. Carter subsequently received over $400,000 in unemployment insurance benefits, according to court records.

The wire fraud charge is punishable by a maximum 20 years in prison and a fine of the greater of $250,000, twice the gross profits Carter made or twice the gross loss suffered by the states, whichever is greatest.

Sentencing is scheduled for March 14, 2023.