Woodbridge Woman, Perth Amboy Man Admit To COVID Relief Scam

PERTH AMBOY, NJ — A Perth Amboy man was sentenced Tuesday to 30 months in prison after he and a Woodbridge woman illegally obtained $400,000 in COVID-19 unemployment benefits, said U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger.

Christopher Valerio, 33, of Perth Amboy, previously pleaded guilty to count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

He ran the COVID fraud scheme with Yanira Abreu, of the Keasbey section of Woodbridge. She pleaded guilty in September, and will be sentenced May 9.

Charges remains pending against a third conspirator, Jose Tavares of New York City.

From July 2020 through February 2021, U.S. Attorneys say the three of them submitted false and fraudulent applications for unemployment insurance benefits to the New York Department of Labor (NYDOL) for COVID relief money from the federal government.

Police say they created fictitious online profiles using names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers, of other individuals without their consent. Once the NY Dept. of Labor processed and approved the fraudulent applications, the state of NY sent the three of them debit cards in value of $444,738.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Kirsch sentenced Valerio to two years of supervised release and ordered restitution and forfeiture, each in the amount of $444,728.