A Westwego woman has been indicted on multiple charges related to unemployment and COVID-19 relief fraud, as disclosed by the U.S. Attorney's Office on September 17. Reha Janee Arvie, aged 33, is facing allegations that she engineered a scheme involving the submission of around 100 fraudulent unemployment insurance applications and securing a Paycheck Protection Program loan under false pretenses, according to a statement released by U.S. Attorney's Office.
Arvie is accused of starting these fraudulent activities in July 2020, using social media platforms like Facebook to recruit others into her scheme. The prosecution claims that she applied for unemployment insurance benefits in multiple states, including Guam, and charged individuals fees to file these claims, which ranged from $1,200 to $1,500. During the court proceedings, it was also made public that Arvie provided false information to federal agents during an interview, as mentioned by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The further layers of the indictment touch on Arvie's purported Paycheck Protection Program loan fraud. It is alleged that she falsely reported an annual income of over $100,000 to receive a Paycheck Protection Program loan worth approximately $20,832. The charges could lead to extensive prison time, with each of the first three counts carrying a maximum sentence of twenty years and the final count holding a maximum of five years, in addition to possible fines and supervised release periods, as per the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The announcement from U.S. Attorney Evans reminds the public that the indictment itself is not indicative of guilt and that Arvie's conviction would require her guilt to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. The case falls under the purview of the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force, which aims to prevent fraud in pandemic-related government relief efforts and programs. This group is augmented by the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee and the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee’s Pandemic Analytics Center of Excellence, which provides analytics and resources in the fight against such fraudulent schemes.
As authorities continue to investigate cases of pandemic-related fraud, the public is encouraged to report any related suspicions or information to the Department of Justice's National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline. This case has seen the collaboration of multiple agencies, including the U.S. Department of Labor and the Department of Veterans Affairs among others, showing the collective effort to ensure individuals engaging in such fraudulent activities are held accountable.
