Former Employee Pleads Guilty to Theft of Government Funds and False Statements

An Amtrak train attendant based in New Orleans, Louisiana, was terminated from employment on April 4, 2022, following his administrative hearing. The employee was terminated after our investigation resulted in criminal charges for making false statements and theft of government funds. He pleaded guilty to these charges on April 27, 2022. Our investigation found the former employee fraudulently received unemployment benefits provided under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. The employee was not eligible to receive the funds as he was employed by Amtrak during this time and the loan application form he submitted contained false information. The employee received an $89,583 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan by falsifying information in the loan application. He will be sentenced at a future date.