Cameroonian National Sentenced to Over Four Years for COVID-19 Unemployment Fraud Scheme Targeting Maryland

A Cameroonian national residing in the United Kingdom has been sentenced to federal prison for orchestrating a significant unemployment insurance fraud scheme that targeted the Maryland Department of Labor and other state agencies during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, Anais Thalia Ossele Massaba, 34, was ordered to serve 54 months in prison for her role in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.

The investigation revealed that from June 2020 through September 2021, Massaba, along with co-conspirators, engaged in a widespread effort to defraud various state workforce agencies of over $1.7 million in unemployment benefits. Operating from the United Kingdom, Massaba and her associates utilized stolen identities of U.S. citizens to submit numerous fraudulent unemployment claims. These fraudulent wire communications were transmitted from the United Kingdom into the United States, specifically targeting Maryland’s labor department.

Court documents indicate that Massaba was part of a sophisticated operation based in the UK. One co-conspirator, identified as residing in the UK under a false identity after fleeing the United States in 2015, is reported to have organized individuals both in the U.S. and the UK to participate in the fraudulent scheme. Massaba and another co-conspirator, who were married, reportedly fled to the UK in September 2019 to evade arrest and prosecution. While in the UK, Massaba used a computer to file fraudulent claims with the Maryland Department of Labor and other state agencies. The conspirators employed anonymous email addresses to create linked, disposable accounts for the purpose of submitting fraudulent applications, which allowed them to aggregate information for their illicit activities.

The scale of the fraud is substantial, with Massaba alone submitting, or causing to be submitted, at least 196 fraudulent unemployment insurance claims to the Maryland Department of Labor. These claims resulted in an estimated loss of $1,708,256. The court filing notes that these submissions represent only a portion of the overall fraudulent claims filed by the entire conspiracy. The U.S. Attorney’s Office highlighted the collaborative efforts of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, and Homeland Security Investigations in Maryland for their roles in investigating this complex case. The prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jared M. Beim and Bijon A. Mostoufi.

This case is part of the broader efforts by the U.S. Department of Justice’s District of Maryland Strike Force, one of five such units established nationwide to combat large-scale fraud related to COVID-19 relief programs, including those established under the CARES Act. These interagency strike forces are designed to identify and prosecute criminal organizations and transnational actors responsible for stealing pandemic relief funds. For those with information regarding attempted fraud involving COVID-19, the Department of Justice provides a National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 and an online complaint form.

Article by Mel Anara, based upon information from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Maryland

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