Santa Barbara County Jail inmates collected at least $1.4 million in COVID benefits, prosecutors say, as part of a massive unemployment scheme that’s played out in correctional institutions across the state. While the number of local fraudulent claims ― 143 ― was reported last month, the associated dollar figure was not previously known.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Brian Cota said it’s not yet clear how many inmates were involved; individuals may have filed multiple claims. He said his office is in the beginning stages of what will be an arduous investigation that will take several months to complete. No charges have been filed yet.
Last week, nine California District Attorneys described the scam in a letter to Governor Gavin Newsom as “the most significant fraud on taxpayer funds in California history,” estimating payments from the state to ineligible recipients behind bars could total more than $1 billion. More than $400,000 has gone to death-row inmates, including Scott Peterson, who was convicted in 2004 of murdering his wife and unborn child. Cota noted that the suspected Santa Barbara participants are among the county’s most serious offenders, as lower-level inmates were released or transferred to home confinement at the start of the pandemic.