8 former state employees indicted in Fulton County for unemployment insurance fraud

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Eight former state employees have been indicted for allegedly committing unemployment insurance fraud during the COVID-19 pandemic, Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr announced Thursday.

Investigators claim La-Kira Williams, James Neville, Denice Vance, Willie Jones, Divincia Richardson, Tamika C. Goodwin, Regina Sterling and Curesha Blair sent false claims and weekly certifications to the Georgia Department of Labor to collect unemployment benefits. All eight workers were actively employed by the state, the attorney general’s office said.

An indictment was brought down on July 27 after evidence in the case was presented to a Fulton County Grand Jury. Among the charges are numerous counts of false statements and writings and violation of the Georgia Employment Security Law.

“Government employees are entrusted to operate honesty and ethically, and those who do not will be held accountable,” Carr said. “We will not hesitate to pursue any individual who works for our state and seeks to illegally obtain public funds for their own personal gain. We are committed to protecting taxpayer dollars no matter the amount, and this type of fraud will not be tolerated.”