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September 21, 2022

Former Internal Revenue Service Employee Arrested on Three Counts of Wire Fraud

On July 6, 2022, in the Western District of Tennessee, former Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Employee Courtney Westmoreland was arrested on three counts of wire fraud for her role in a scheme to defraud the United States Government through fraudulent Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) applications and fraudulent state unemployment insurance claims while employed at the IRS.

Westmoreland was employed by the IRS as a contact representative in the Wage and Investment Service Centers Department from approximately October 2020 to October 2021. Beginning in and around June 2020, and continuing through February 2021, Westmoreland devised a scheme to defraud the Small Business Administration to obtain money and property by means of false and fraudulent pretenses. She accomplished this by creating and submitting fraudulent loan applications on behalf of herself and her purported company, “Court Closet Connection.” In the applications, Westmoreland falsely represented that her company had operated since January 2018, employed four people, and had earned gross receipts of $5,000 per month. In total, Westmoreland sought approximately $32,500 and obtained at least $11,500 in EIDL payments.

Additionally, beginning in or around October 2020 and continuing through July 2021, while employed at the IRS, Westmoreland falsely sought unemployment benefits from the State of Tennessee. Prior to her employment at the IRS, Westmoreland received unemployment benefits. While employed at the IRS, Westmoreland continued submitting fraudulent certifications to the Tennessee Department of Labor claiming that she was still unemployed and was not earning any wages. In total, Westmoreland received approximately $16,000 through the fraudulent unemployment insurance certifications.

If convicted, Westmoreland could receive a term of imprisonment for up to 20 years’, a maximum fine of $250,000, and a term of supervised release for up to three years.

Source:  The facts in this case narrative come from the following publicly available documents: W.D. Tenn., Indict., Filed June 9, 2022; W.D. Tenn., Arrest Warrant Filed July 6, 2022; and W.D. Tenn., Notice of Penalties Filed June 9, 2022.