An Inland Empire resident has been sentenced to 84 months in federal prison for her role in a $1.7 million COVID-19 benefits fraud scheme. Jasmine Unique Mallard-McCarter, also known as “JassyMC,” was sentenced by United States District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong and ordered to pay $1,765,407 in restitution.
McCarter pleaded guilty on February 28 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. She impersonated others online to obtain government benefits for personal use and used information from co-conspirators who were not eligible for these benefits.
McCarter charged fees to instruct others on how to apply for government benefits they were not eligible for without detection. She also acted as a broker for counterfeit documents, including Social Security cards and driver’s licenses, which were sometimes used to deceive the government into paying unjustified benefits.
Her fraudulent services were advertised on Instagram under the handles “JassyMc” and “EliteRealEstateandBusiness.” In her posts, she referred to herself as the “Jass of All Trades,” offering services such as filing fraudulent unemployment insurance applications and brokering counterfeit documents.
Investigations into this matter were conducted by several agencies including the U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General, FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, and United States Secret Service. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Brown.
In response to pandemic-related fraud, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force on May 17, 2021. This task force coordinates efforts across government agencies to combat pandemic-related fraud by sharing resources and information gained from previous enforcement actions.
On September 15, 2022, the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Central and Eastern Districts of California were selected to jointly head one of three national COVID-19 Fraud Strike Force Teams aimed at combating large-scale pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations.
Information about allegations of attempted COVID-19 related fraud can be reported via the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline or through their web complaint form.
