Convicted murderer Scott Peterson and other death row inmates in California were named in a massive scam that involved coronavirus unemployment benefits from the state being sent to incarcerated felons, according to prosecutors.
“In my nearly four decades, I have never seen fraud of this magnitude,” Kern County District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer said.
Prosecutors across the state sent a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom, saying the case is “the most significant fraud on taxpayer funds in California history.”
Investigators found more than $400,000 were paid out to death row inmates, and more than $140 million was sent to other inmates across the dozens of prisons in California, Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert said.
“The murderers and rapists and human traffickers should not be getting this money,” said Schubert. “It needs to stop.”
Prosecutors said that the scam involved people outside of the prison system filing unemployment benefits on behalf of the inmates.
Peterson’s attorney, Pat Harris, said that though his name was cited during the investigation, there is no evidence he received the benefits. Peterson was convicted of murder in 2004 after his pregnant wife’s death in 2002.
“This investigation, when it’s completed, will show that he had not a thing to do with any kind of scheme to get fraudulent benefits,” Harris said. “Mr. Peterson has never received any money due to fraudulent benefits. We fully expect that the investigation will show that when completed.”
Newsom said in a statement: “Unemployment fraud across local jails and state and federal prisons is absolutely unacceptable. We will continue to fully partner with law enforcement and direct as many resources as needed to investigate and resolve this issue speedily. While we have made improvements, we need to do more. Everything the state does will be done in partnership with the local District Attorneys and I thank them for their commitment to resolving this issue as quickly as possible.”
