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April 27, 2022

California Woman Pleads Guilty to the Fraudulent Use of Inmates’ Personally Identifiable Information to Obtain Stimulus Checks

On March 4, 2022, in the Northern District of California, Sheila Denise Dunlap pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Dunlap devised a scheme to defraud the United States through the submission of fraudulent Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), Economic Impact Payments (EIP) claims using personally identifiable information (PII) of inmates. The EIP, which were also known as “stimulus checks,” were issued to American households in the amount of up to $1,200 per eligible adult and $500 per qualifying child.

According to the court documents, on or about March 2020 and continuing through July 2020, Dunlap conspired with her son, a condemned inmate serving a death sentence at San Quentin State Prison in California, to obtain and use fellow inmates’ PII to receive EIP. Dunlap’s son would send, via telephone and or text message, PII of fellow prisoners and other individuals who they suspected would qualify as non-filers eligible for EIP. Non-filers are individuals who were not required to file a 2018 or 2019 tax return. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) provided a web-based tool, the EIP Portal, for non-filers to submit their personal and bank account information to file a simple tax return and receive their EIP.

Around April 2020, Dunlap’s son coordinated with an unknown individual to e-mail Dunlap a spreadsheet that contained PII of 9,043 individuals. Between May 4, 2020 and June 18, 2020, via the EIP Portal, Dunlap electronically filed 121 EIP claims, totaling $145,200, using the names and Social Security Numbers of individuals whose PII she received from her son.

Although Dunlap filed each claim under a different taxpayer name and Social Security Number, she listed the same bank account number on the claim. The bank account was a business account held by Dunlap, which she had sole signatory authority. Of the 121 fraudulent EIP claims filed by Dunlap, 39 were accepted by the IRS, of which five were electronically deposited into Dunlap’s bank account. These individuals did not consent to Dunlap’s use of their identification to file EIP claims.

At sentencing, which is scheduled for June 24, 2022, Dunlap could receive more than 20 years’ imprisonment and pay a maximum fine of up to $500,000.

Source:  The facts in this case narrative come from the following publicly available documents: N.D. Cal., Plea Agr., filed March 4, 2022; N.D. Cal., Indict., filed May 13, 2021; and DOJ Press Release published March 4, 2022.