'Pandemic-era Bonnie and Clyde' get prison in unemployment benefit scheme

Two Metro Detroit residents, whom federal prosecutors called a "pandemic-era Bonnie and Clyde," have been sentenced in connection with an unemployment insurance benefit fraud scheme, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced Wednesday.

Mitchacole Johnson, 45, of Shelby Township received three-year sentence in federal prison. Her partner, Larry Witherspoon, 46, of Harper Woods received four years.

Both pleaded guilty to wire fraud in December and were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gershwin Drain.

"These defendants exploited the current pandemic to defraud the state of Michigan and United States for their own personal gain," U.S. Attorney Dawn Ison said in a statement Wednesday.

Johnson and Witherspoon were charged in January 2021.

Months earlier, fraud investigators from Michigan alerted federal agents to a potential unemployment insurance fraud scheme involving 66 claims.

According to federal court records, between May 2020 and August 2020, the pair submitted fraudulent claims to the states of California and Michigan in other people's names, without their knowledge or approval.

"Johnson filed a number of claims in her own name, while Witherspoon filed multiple claims in the names of people who had names similar to his own, such as 'Lawrence Witherspoon,' " officials said Wednesday.

"Both Johnson and Witherspoon filed their claims using other people’s Social Security Numbers and had the benefits deposited into a variety of bank accounts, some connected to pre-paid debit cards."

According to a plea agreement filed in December, investigators wrote: "In total, Johnson and Witherspoon actually obtained $1,372,222 in fraudulent benefits. However, if the majority of their attempted claims had been successful, the potential loss would have been closer to $3,500,000."

The couple sought lower sentences.

Witherspoon's lawyer, Henry Scharg, said in a filing this month that Witherspoon had multiple significant health issues and "understands the seriousness of this offense and takes full responsibility for his conduct."

In a memorandum filed this month, Steven Scharg, who represented Johnson, said she had accepted responsibility for her actions and has not had any violent or felony convictions.

"It is unfortunate that Defendant Johnson is in this situation. She had a successful scholastic life, been working regularly and ended up sliding into this terrible situation that she’s in now," he said. "... It appears Defendant Johnson has really learned her lesson and realizes how important a person’s freedom really is."

The government disagreed in a response to the requests last week, calling the couple "a pandemic-era Bonnie and Clyde."

"The defendants seem to have been motivated primarily by vice and greed," the U.S. Attorney's Office said. "And when contrasted with the significant need experienced by so many during the Covid-19 pandemic, their scheme strikes an especially repugnant chord."

The sentencing follows other Michigan residents charged in connection with pandemic aid theft or fraud.

Prosecutors on Wednesday announced a state unemployment insurance examiner inappropriately released payments on 101 claims totaling more than $1.6 million.

Last week, a Farmington Hills man who showcased his luxurious lifestyle online was sentenced to 75 months in federal prison in connection with a scheme.

The Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency reported in December that it estimated it lost more than $8.5 billion to fraud during the pandemic, as claims skyrocketed and fraud attempts persisted.

Late last year, the U.S. Secret Service estimated nearly $100 billion, at a minimum, had been stolen from COVID-19 relief programs set up to help businesses and people who lost their jobs due to the pandemic.