Six current, former U.S. Postal employees accused of collecting fraudulent unemployment benefits, business loans

CHICAGO (CBS) — 6 existing and previous U.S. Postal Provider staff have been billed with fraudulently obtaining loans for businesses that did not actually exist.

The 6 defendants ended up billed as aspect of an investigation by the Illinois Legal professional General’s Taskforce on Unemployment Gains Coverage Fraud. They all applied for a wide range of governing administration financial loans and support throughout the top of the COVID-19 pandemic, in accordance to the Lawyer General’s office environment.

In addition to trying to get financial loans from the Small Business Administration for enterprises that were being not true, 4 of the defendants are accused of filing for fraudulent unemployment gains even though they had been really performing for the Postal Provider all alongside.

The defendants are:

• Davonte Kendall, 30, of Lansing
• Bria Taylor, 27, of Berwyn
• Imani Butler, 29, of Dixmoor
• Raven Daniel, 28, of Bellwood
• Louis K. Lay, Jr., 32, of Chicago
• Erica M. Beck, 34, of Chicago.

Involving them, the 6 defendants are charged with extra than 65 felony counts – like theft by deception, point out positive aspects fraud, mortgage fraud, wire fraud, and forgery.

Lay and Beck – who are married to every other and equally nevertheless get the job done for the Postal Provider – are also billed with scheming to steal $25,000 in financial influence payments from people in the South Shore community.

The Lawyer General’s office began investigating when the Postal Service’s Office of the Inspector Common claimed that some personnel had been gathering unemployment although functioning and acquiring compensated by the Postal Company. A joint federal and state investigation followed.