A Los Angeles County woman was ordered Thursday to return nearly $25,000 in illegally obtained disaster-relief funds she received by falsely claiming her property was damaged in the Pacific Palisades wildfire, despite having no residence affected by the disaster.
Hedeshia Robertson, 36, of Lakewood, pleaded guilty in May in downtown Los Angeles to one federal count of fraud in connection with major disaster or emergency benefits, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Robertson admitted in her plea agreement that she filed a fraudulent application for Federal Emergency Management Agency benefits on Jan. 28, seeking disaster relief for a Palisades property that she neither owned nor rented. As a result of her fraudulent application, Robertson obtained about $25,000 in FEMA benefits, prosecutors said.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said that, at the time of her arrest, Robertson attempted to obtain additional FEMA benefits for a purported property lease in San Francisco.
Robertson was also sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Judge Fernando Olguin to time already served for the day she spent in custody.
A host of false claims were made in the wake of the Eaton and Palisades fires that started on Jan. 7. Together, the wildfires burned nearly 60,000 acres, destroyed more than 16,000 structures and resulted in the deaths of 29 people. Former President Joe Biden approved a Major Disaster Declaration, which prompted FEMA to develop a program to provide financial assistance to fire...
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