Veterans Affairs Employee Charged with Fraudulently Obtaining Multiple Covid-19 Benefits

BOSTON - A Brockton woman, who has been employed full-time as a Medical Technician with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs since August 2021, has been charged in federal court in Boston with wire fraud.

Denise Baez, 51, was charged on May 1, 2026 with two counts of wire fraud.

As alleged in the charging documents, Baez submitted two applications seeking Paycheck Protection Program ("PPP") loans. In those applications, Baez made false claims regarding gross income purportedly earned from a sole proprietorship. To support these false claims, Baez allegedly attached fraudulent tax documents as part of the applications. The PPP loan applications were approved and Baez received $41,666. Baez allegedly used that money on personal expenses. However, in September 2021, Baez allegedly submitted loan forgiveness applications that falsely claimed the entire $41,666 was spent on payroll. Based on the misrepresentation the loans were forgiven.

The charge of wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Special Agent in Charge Christopher Algieri with the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General's Northeast Field Office made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Sullivan of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.