A Florence couple, as well as family members from Florida and New York, have all pleaded guilty for their role in a nationwide unemployment fraud conspiracy.
Mohammad Ribhi Farraj, 43 and Nariman Mahmoud Masoud, 35, both of Florence, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, as did Susan Masoud, 31, of Brooklyn, N.Y. and Marvet Masoud, 34, of Homestead, Fla., according to a news release from the U.S. District Attorney’s office.
A lengthy investigation by the FBI included witness interviews, confidential informants, search warrants and subpoenas, the release said. The investigation revealed that from January 2020 to February 2022, the defendants engaged in a wire fraud conspiracy to file and receive fraudulent claims for regular unemployment insurance and expanded pandemic benefits from New York, Florida and South Carolina.
The defendants would electronically submit false unemployment claims to various state agencies, using the personal identifying information of others. They then had the funds loaded onto prepaid debit cards issued in the names of the third parties, had the cards mailed to addresses under their control, and used the cards to withdraw cash from ATMs, according to the release.
Mohammad Farraj’s and Nariman Masoud’s role in the scheme was to obtain personal identifying information, create fraudulent unemployment insurance applications, recruit others into the scheme, withdraw money from accounts containing benefits, and place that money into their...
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