Woman admits part in $1M Covid fraud scheme
By Brendan Kirby
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MOBILE, Alabama (WALA) — A Saraland woman pleaded guilty Monday to charges that she helped prepare more than 50 fraudulent applications for COVID-19 assistance.
Those fraudulent applications under the Paycheck Protection Program amounted to more than $1 million, according to defendant Corine Campbell’s written plea agreement.
Campbell also pleaded guilty to a charge of being a felon in possession of a handgun. That charge arose from a search that federal agents conducted of her Saraland apartment. They found a pistol, which Campbell was not allowed to have because of a 2012 theft conviction in Baldwin County.
Campbell admitted that she helped prepare the applications for people under the program, designed to help businesses impacted by the pandemic. Two of those people were convicted felons who were in prison when they purportedly were operating their businesses, according to the plea document.
Court records show Campbell helped filed the paperwork for Demetrius “Demetric” Richardson and Leroy Vidal Jackson. Richardson, who recently got out of federal prison after serving time for on a drug charge, also has a murder charge pending.
Jackson already has pleaded guilty. Federal charges are pending against Richardson.
Both men received $20,832 under the Paycheck Protection Program. Jackson claimed he was self-employed as a landscaper and that his business had income of $106,788 in 2019, according to court records. At that time, though, Jackson was serving a 20-year sentence for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute drugs.
Richardson’s application claimed he ran a janitorial services company.
According to Campbell’s plea agreement, she forged credit union statements showing that Jackson and Richardson had the exact same balance – $10,044.77.
Law enforcement investigators, during the search of Campbell’s apartment, seized her iPhone and discovered text messages between her and Jackson discussing the fraudulent scheme, according to the plea document. Campbell also admitted to using the messaging service WhatsApp to communicate.
The plea agreement states that Richardson called his sister from jail on April 28 and told her he was going to transfer money into Campbell’s credit union account. The following month, she received two payments for $4,000 each, the plea document states.
A judge set sentencing for April 25. Prosecutors have agreed to recommend leniency in exchange for Campbell’s guilty plea.
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