A Florida man pleaded guilty to attempting to steal more than $2.3 million in COVID-19 unemployment insurance benefits in Maryland and California.

David Godin, 34, faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for the wire fraud scheme.

The Miami native, who had several aliases according to court documents, also faces a consecutive mandatory minimum sentence of two years in federal prison for using the personal, identifiable information of identity theft victims during and in relation to the fraudulent activities.

“Godin’s scheme was sophisticated,” U.S. attorneys said in court documents. “Godin used and controlled at least two anonymous email addresses that he used to create linked, disposable email addresses for use in fraudulent [unemployment insurance] applications. This allowed him to file numerous fraudulent [unemployment insurance] claims from a single location.”

The ploy defrauded the Maryland Department of Labor and California Employment Development Department by using the information of identity theft victims, anonymous email addresses, virtual private networks and proxy servers from June 2020 through November 2023, according to a plea agreement.

This enabled Godin to file numerous fraudulent claims with multiple states from a single location, aggregate insurance information in discrete accounts, and avoid fraud safeguards put in place by state insurance programs, attorneys said.

Godin submitted and caused the submission of at least 140 fraudulent claims to Maryland, California and other state workforce agencies, resulting in $2,364,226 in benefits, according to court documents.

Attorneys said he obtained $1,087,345.66.

“Godin knowingly and willfully used, possessed and transferred the means of identification belonging to more than 140 real persons, including that of identity theft, without lawful authority, knowing that the means of identification belonged to real persons during and in relation to his scheme to defraud the [Maryland Department of Labor] and the [California Employment Development Department] and other state workforce agencies through use of [illegal] wire communications,” the U.S. attorneys said in court documents.

Godin was defended by the Federal Public Defender, District of Maryland, which could not be reached for comment.

As part of the plea agreement, Godin is required to pay back the $1,087,345.66, plus any other money, property or assets that he obtained through the fraud.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 30.

This case is part of the District of Maryland COVID-19 Strike Force established throughout the United States by the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute COVID-19 fraud, including fraud relating to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, which was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

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