Victoria Kates, a 34-year-old resident of New Britain, has admitted to charges related to the fraudulent acquisition of COVID-19 relief funds. Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Marc H. Silverman, confirmed her guilty plea. During the court session in Hartford before U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala, Kates waived her right to be indicted.
Court documents reveal that Kates engaged in fraudulent activities from March 2020 to May 2021, during which she illegally secured $217,056 from the Connecticut Department of Labor (CT-DOL). She did so by submitting fraudulent unemployment applications on behalf of acquaintances, family members, and others. These applications falsely represented the employment status of various individuals to secure benefits, from which Kates took a fee.
One cited incident occurred in August 2020, where Kates filed a fraudulent unemployment claim for a friend, falsely stating the friend was a self-employed driver working 40 hours a week. As a result, the CT-DOL disbursed $27,993, with Kates retaining $1,000 to $1,500. When required to provide further evidence by CT-DOL, Kates produced fake documents, including a bogus IRS form and a manipulated photo of a business envelope.
In addition to exploiting the unemployment benefits, Kates in 2021 obtained $16,250 via the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) by providing false income details to secure the loan and its forgiveness.
Kates has pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud, each carrying a potential 20-year prison sentence. Her sentencing has been scheduled for September 2, and she remains released on a $40,000 bond.
The investigation has been conducted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher W. Schmeisser leading the prosecution.
Authorities urge anyone with information on COVID-19-related fraud to report to the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline or via their online form.