A Waterbury man was arrested on Wednesday, accused of stealing pandemic unemployment funds. Olajuwon Harrington, 30, faces charges of fraud and identity theft.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s office, Harrington is accused of using real identifying information of people without their prior knowledge to submit fraudulent applications for unemployment assistance provided by the CARES Act.
Upon receipt of the applications, the Connecticut Department of Labor granted assistance to the fraudulent applicant in the form of prepaid debit cards. Harrington allegedly obtained those debit cards and used them for his own purposes.
Harrington was charged with access device fraud and aggravated identity theft. The fraud charges carry a maximum sentence of 15 years in federal prison while identity theft carries a mandatory sentence of two years.
Harrington made his initial appearance in court on Wednesday and was released on $50,000 bond.
