Chicago – Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced today his office obtained a guilty plea and restitution in a case against a Chicago woman who fraudulently applied for and received thousands of dollars after filing multiple fraudulent COVID-19 pandemic unemployment assistance claims and a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan application for a business that did not exist.
The Attorney General’s office prosecuted Tina Tzoumas, 39, of Chicago, who pleaded guilty on Monday to one count of identity theft, a Class 1 felony. Tzoumas paid $108,145 in restitution, with $90,645 being paid to the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) and $17,500 to the U.S. Small Business Administration. Cook County Circuit Court Judge Adrienne E. Davis sentenced Tzoumas to four years of felony probation.
“During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when many people were counting on the government’s relief programs to provide for themselves and their families, some individuals were abusing those same programs for their own financial gain,” Raoul said. “I am committed to holding accountable those who used the pandemic to steal from the people of Illinois.”
Raoul’s office alleged that between June 2020 and June 2021, Tzoumas submitted multiple COVID-19 pandemic unemployment assistance claims that were determined to be fraudulent. Tzoumas submitted these claims using personal information stolen from other individuals and received thousands of dollars in IDES funds. Tzoumas also allegedly used her own information to submit a fraudulent PPP loan application and received thousands of dollars for a business that did not exist.
This plea is the most recent action Attorney General Raoul has taken to hold individuals accountable for fraudulently collecting government assistance related to the pandemic. Raoul’s office has prosecuted a number of individuals for PPP loan fraud and referred other investigations to the appropriate state’s attorneys for further evaluation.
Assistant Attorney General Samantha Cain prosecuted the case for Raoul’s Special Prosecutions Bureau.
