Daryl Jones Jr., a St. Louis County man, faces the consequences after pleading guilty to various felony charges in connection with a false conspiracy to defraud COVID-19 pandemic unemployment benefits. According to the US Attorney’s Office, the 45-year-old admitted conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and wire fraud. Between mid-June and mid-July 2020, Jones was able to fraudulently obtain $84,592 in unemployment insurance benefits from the State of Pennsylvania by utilizing illegally obtained debit cards in various people’s names.
The strategy didn’t seem to be solely driven by his own initiative. Jones collaborated with his girlfriend, Cheryl Johnson, who provided some of the personal information needed to illegally open the accounts—information she obtained while monitoring their real owners at St. Louis-area businesses. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Jones filed fraudulent pay stubs from a bogus firm on June 3, 2021, to acquire a vehicle loan worth more than $31,000.
The plot unraveled further when Jones and Johnson were caught red-handed. On June 25, 2021, as officials conducted a sanctioned search at the house of co-conspirator James Whitiker, Jones and Johnson came in the same vehicle obtained through loan fraud. There, law police uncovered a notebook containing the identities of around 35 people, as well as stolen identification documents and various debit cards linked to Pennsylvania’s unemployment insurance benefits.
Jones’ sentencing has been scheduled for May 29. Meanwhile, his accomplice, 44-year-old Johnson, has pled guilty to related counts and will be sentenced in May. Whitiker, who accepted his role in the scheme, has already been sentenced to three years in prison. According to the US Attorney’s Office, he admitted to using two of the debit cards during the conspiracy and was fully aware that his residence was being utilized as a base for the unemployment fraud scheme.