Gaithersburg Man Helped Steal $1.4M in Unemployment Benefits

GAITHERSBURG, MD — A Gaithersburg man who pleaded guilty to taking part in a scheme to fraudulently rake in more than $1.4 million in unemployment benefits was sentenced Monday to 30 months in prison.

The Department of Justice said in a release that Ferny Alexander Moreno Puente, 26, must also serve three years of supervised release following his prison sentence, and he must forfeit and pay restitution of $268,911.

According to plea agreements, from 2012 to 2015, Moreno Puente and his co-conspirators received Maryland and Pennsylvania unemployment benefits in the names of individuals by submitting false applications.

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Diameter Akala, 43, of Silver Spring, pleaded guilty in May to organizing the scheme to obtain the bogus unemployment benefits. He enlisted his friends and family members to join him in the scheme, prosecutors said.

Members of the conspiracy obtained the personally identifying information individuals, then Akala filed fake documents with both states in the names of fictitious companies stating that the individuals were paid wages. In fact, no unemployment insurance taxes were ever paid to either state in the names of the fictitious companies. Akala offered money to co-conspirators in exchange for use of their personal information.

Akala and other members of the conspiracy used residential mailing addresses of co-conspirators in Maryland, New York, the District of Columbia, Pennsylvania and Virginia to receive unemployment benefits in the form of prepaid debit cards.

Co-conspirators Wilfred Mendez, Tawana McClain, Wilfredo Torres and his half-brother, Eric Gonzalez, admitted that they let Akala file fraudulent unemployment claims in their names. Mendez, Moreno Puente and Torres also provided the personal identification information and/or addresses of other individuals to file additional false claims in the names of those individuals, and others.

Federal prosecutors say the co-conspirators used the benefits cards at ATMs or stores to withdraw money. Generally, the conspirators kept a portion of the money for themselves and gave the remainder to Akala.
In total, the states paid $1.468 million in fraudulently obtained unemployment benefits to Akala, who will be required to pay restitution in that amount.

Akala faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and a mandatory minimum of two years in prison, consecutive to any other sentence, for aggravated identity theft. He will also be required to pay restitution and forfeit $1.4 million.

His sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 4.