An Everett man was sentenced last week in federal court in Boston in connection with a scheme to defraud the Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance of more than $1.7 million.

Edison Delarosa, 53, was sentenced to two years in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution of more than $27,000. Delarosa pleaded guilty to three counts of mail fraud and three counts of wire fraud in October 2018. He was arrested, charged and subsequently released on conditions in February 2017.

Delarosa engaged in a scheme to defraud the commonwealth of Massachusetts by exploiting the DUA’s online system, which allows claimants to manage their unemployment insurance accounts over the internet, from approximately Jan. 5 through Nov. 24, 2016.

On multiple occasions, Delarosa, who did not actually owe the DUA any money, submitted bogus repayments online, which triggered the release of refund checks payable to him in varying amounts. Delarosa submitted a total of 136 fraudulent repayments amounting to more than $1.7 million during the course of the scheme, for which the DUA issued him 15 paper refund checks, totaling more than $1.2 million.

The DUA uncovered the scheme after six of those checks, totaling more than $27,000, were mailed to Delarosa and deposited into his account.

Everett Man Sentenced for Defrauding Department of Unemployment Assistance

by Banker & Tradesman time to read: 1 min
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