Reimbursement ordered in unemployment insurance fraud case
Posted
Staff Report-
INDIANAPOLIS – A Warsaw man who pleaded guilty in January to unemployment insurance fraud was ordered last week to reimburse the Indiana Department of Workforce Development for the benefits.
Leroy Konkle, 67, was ordered July 16 to repay Indiana Department of Workforce Development $31,451 for the benefits he fraudulently collected, according to a news release from the department.
He had pleaded guilty to unemployment insurance fraud in Kosciusko County Superior Court I on Jan. 4.
He also was sentenced to four years of probation. Through the use of agency records, an Indiana Department of Workforce Development employee began an investigation and determined that Konkle was working and receiving wages while claiming unemployment insurance benefits, the release states.
Workforce Development receives wage reports and new hire data from employers across the state and uses the information to ensure people are not collecting unemployment insurance benefits while working.
Since 2013, Indiana courts have ordered fraudsters to repay millions in restitution to the state’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund, the release states.
“Combatting fraud preserves employer-paid monies in the trust fund for those individuals whom are truly in need of unemployment insurance benefits,” said Regina Ashley, Workforce Development chief unemployment insurance and workforce solutions officer.
The release states people can help combat unemployment insurance fraud and abuse by reporting it online at www.in.gov/dwd/fraud.
