BOSTON — A Boston man pleaded guilty today to fraud, identity theft, firearms and drug charges.

Jammy Alphonse, 28, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to wire fraud, misrepresenting a social security number, aggravated identity theft, possession of a firearm and ammunition, and possession with the intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. United States District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin scheduled sentencing for September 15, 2022. Alphonse was indicted by information on May 11, 2022.

Beginning in or around May 2020, Alphonse conspired to obtain Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) benefits, which were made available under the Aid, Relief and Recovery Act. economic security against coronavirus. Specifically, Alphonse conspired to submit false PUA claims on behalf of other people and using other people’s personally identifiable information. Alphonse and his co-conspirators created email accounts for the purpose of submitting fraudulent PUA claims from Alphonse’s residence in Everett and other locations. The fraudulently obtained funds were then directed to accounts held in Alphonse’s name or in the name of a co-conspirator.

Additionally, in February 2021, Alphonse submitted an application to rent a property in East Boston using another person’s name, social security number, and date of birth. As a result, Alphonse resided in this apartment from approximately February 2021 until August 6, 2021, when he was arrested for a federal firearms offense. A search of the apartment revealed, among other items, a loaded Glock Model 43X, a 9mm firearm, 47 rounds of rounds and approximately 75 grams or more of fentanyl.

Alphonse had previously been arrested and charged in August 2021 with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon following a July 2021 shooting in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Alphonse remained in detention since that date.

The wire fraud conspiracy charge carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of probation and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of misrepresenting a Social Security number carries a sentence of up to five years in prison, up to three years of probation and a fine of up to $250,000. The aggravated identity theft charge carries a mandatory sentence of two years in prison to be served consecutively to any other sentence handed down, up to one year of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to three years of probation and a fine of up to 250,000 dollars. The charge of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 40 years in prison, up to four years probation and a fine of up to at $5 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on US sentencing guidelines and the laws that govern sentencing in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, special agent in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; Mark Comorosky, Special Agent in Charge, US Secret Service, Boston Field Office; Jonathan Mellone, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Investigations of Racketeering and Labor Fraud; Colonel Christopher Mason, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; Boston Police Acting Commissioner Gregory Long; and Cambridge Police Commissioner Christine Elow made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Mackenzie Duane of Rollins’ Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to mobilize Department of Justice resources in partnership with government agencies to scale up enforcement and prevention efforts. pandemic-related fraud. The task force strengthens efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies administering relief programs to prevent fraud, among other methods, by increasing and integrating coordination mechanisms existing ones, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their agendas, and sharing and leveraging information and knowledge gained from previous enforcement efforts. For more information about the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

Anyone with information about alleged attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) hotline at 866-720-5721 or through the complaint form NCDF online at: https://www. .justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.