Posted on 07/28/2006 11:28:06 AM PDT by ncountylee
MOBILE, Ala. (AP) - A south Alabama woman was indicted Thursday on federal charges of defrauding FEMA out of $277,377 by making false claims for Hurricane Katrina damages, the U.S. attorney said.
Lawanda T. Williams spent FEMA's money on real estate, vehicles, electronics, a mobile home and other property, U.S. Attorney Deborah J. Rhodes said in a statement.
The 32-year-old Jackson woman, also known as Lawanda Johnson, was arrested on July 18 on charges of wire and mail fraud.
In a 66-count grand jury indictment Thursday, additional charges include making false claims to the government and aggravated identity theft.
U.S. Magistrate Judge William E. Cassady declined to release Williams on bond. A trial date hasn't been set.
Federal authorities said Williams, claiming Katrina damages in 30 separate cases, used false Social Security numbers and various names and addresses in Gulfport, Pascagoula and Biloxi, Miss., and New Orleans, as well as her rural home in Jackson, north of Mobile.
If convicted of mail fraud and wire fraud, Williams could be sentenced to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Making false claims to the government could bring five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The identity theft charge carries a mandatory two-year sentence consecutive to any other sentences.
Rhodes said investigations by the Hurricane Katrina Task Force continue to track down those who took advantage of last year's relief efforts.
So far, 11 individuals have been charged in the court's Southern District of Alabama.•
She's got to have more money than she'll ever know what to do with to have uttered something so remarkably stupid in the first place. I doubt she's changed her tune, so to speak ...
Didn't she kill a bear with a knife?
If the GOP was smart (they have seldom been accused of this,) they nail the major Katrina thieves with serious jail time, then offer plea bargains to the minor offenders who come forward voluntarily. The plea bargain should include repayment of the fraud amount, a small fine, and a felony conviction on their record.
Of course, we'd also need to be sure that the opportunity to vote is removed with the felony conviction.....
And ably voiced by one of Hollyweird's staunchest conservatives...Kelsey Grammar
LOL. Between this, the Mel Gibon thread and the guy looking for a job, I've been in stitches half of the afternoon.
And dontcha' know he has a blast imitating spoiled liberal elites....and they don't even realize it.
"But Bart, you don't have to be able to read to enjoy the Springfield Literary Review. Why just look at these amusing caricatures of Susan Sontag and Gore Vidal."
It is what made/makes "Frazier" soooooooo hilarious.
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