Chicago Man Sentenced For Unemployment Scam

CHICAGO (CN) - A Chicago man was sentenced to three years in federal prison for defrauding the Illinois Department of Employment Insurance of almost $500,000 in unemployment payments to 57 claimants not legally allowed to work in the U.S.

Between 2006 and 2009, Cisneros accepted money from 57 ineligible claimants to submit fraudulent applications for unemployment insurance payments. According to a U.S. Justice Department press release, "Cisneros knew that the claims he submitted and assisted in submitting for unemployment insurance were fraudulent because the claimants were not legally allowed to work in the United States due to their immigration status, making them ineligible to receive unemployment insurance payments."

The Illinois Department of Employment Insurance paid $479,571 to approximately 57 ineligible applicants, $261,017 of which went into Cisnero's bank account. The applications used social security numbers that did not match the applicants' names or dates of birth, or numbers that matched their names, but the individuals were not eligible to work in the United States.

Roberto Cisneros, age 34, pled guilty to mail fraud in January 2012.

Yesterday, U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber sentenced Cisneros to three years in federal prison. As Cisneros was in the country illegally when he was arrested, he will be deported when he finishes his sentence.

The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Halley B. Guren and Matthew Getter.

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