Justice Department’s Fraud Division Announces Unprecedented Fraud Enforcement Actions in Southeast Resulting from Federal–State Partnerships

The Justice Department's National Fraud Enforcement Division today announced a series of significant fraud enforcement actions across the Southeastern United States, the product of robust federal-state partnerships with Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina. The charges announced today encompass 17 cases spanning the seven states. These recent cases involve over $350 million in intended losses and include cases involving SNAP benefits, Small Business Administration loans, housing benefits, and tax fraud. From July 4 alone, federal prosecutors charged cases reaching over $90 million loss and implicating 12 named defendants. The Division separately announced the formation of federal-state anti-fraud task forces in North Carolina, Mississippi, and Florida.

The Division additionally announced new federal-state cooperation agreements with this group of states to strengthen ongoing fraud enforcement efforts, following a recent roundtable that brought together 18 U.S. Attorneys Offices, seven State Attorneys General Offices, five federal law enforcement partners, and over 50 state officials.

"Defeating the fraud epidemic in our country requires all-hands-on-deck from our federal and state partners nationwide," said Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. "Whether it's sharing intelligence, data, personnel, or priorities, partnering with state agencies directly strengthens our ability to identify those stealing taxpayer dollars. When federal prosecutors work alongside state agencies to root out fraud, fraudsters lose and the American people win."

"Working alongside our federal and interstate partners, we are committed to combating fraud at every level. Our collaborative partnerships allowed us to uncover more than $20 million in Medicaid fraud claims during an operation known as Operation Border Wars," said South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson. "My office also recently indicted six individuals accused of defrauding taxpayers and stealing jobs from hardworking South Carolinians by providing counterfeit employment documents to illegal aliens. The rule of law means something in South Carolina, and we will continue working with our law enforcement partners to dismantle these schemes and prosecute those responsible to the fullest extent of the law."

"We appreciate the Trump Administration's commitment to rooting out fraud in government healthcare programs, including the creation of a dedicated state-federal partnership to lead this fight," said Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall. "Thanks to the Administration's serious commitment to ending waste, fraud, and abuse, we now have the tools and coordination needed to identify bad actors and hold them accountable. Together, we are protecting the integrity of Medicaid and the taxpayer dollars that fund it."

"With the help of the Trump administration, the states are fighting back against benefits fraud," said Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murill. "Since taking office, my administration has secured more than 100 convictions and $73 million in court-ordered restitution. Under the leadership of Acting Attorney General Blanche, Director Patel, and Administrator Oz, our partnership is holding criminals accountable and delivering real results for the taxpayers of Louisiana and the nation."

"President Trump has challenged all of us to step up our efforts to fight fraud and protect American taxpayers from this grift," said Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch. "Partnerships like this one show that we are bringing everything to the table in this work. In that spirit, with the support of the U.S. Department of Justice, my office is standing up Joint Task Force Vigilance with our two U.S. Attorneys and the FBI to surge resources and personnel to make Mississippi safer, protect Mississippi taxpayers, and restore law and order. This first-of-its-kind task force will bring the full authority of our offices to bear on con artists, grifters, fraudsters, and scammers."

Building a National Model of Federal-State Cooperation

In connection with these fraud enforcement actions, the Fraud Division, U.S. Attorneys' Offices, federal law enforcement officials, and state partners announced the following innovative steps to enhance federal-state cooperation to detect, investigate, and prosecute fraud:

• The Fraud Division and Secretaries of State from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and South Carolina as well as State Treasurers from Florida, Mississippi, and South Carolina announced data sharing agreements that provide the Fraud Division access to publicly available corporate registration and public benefits payment data held by these state agencies. This data will help the Fraud Division proactively identify connections and patterns across both business entities and public benefits payment activity - cutting through the shell companies, layered structures, and complex financial trails that fraudsters rely on to conceal control and carry out largescale schemes.

Federal and State Partners Represented at the 2026 Southeast Fraud Enforcement Partnership Event

Alabama: Secretary of State Wes Allen and Chief Examiner Rachel Riddle.

Florida: Attorney General James Uthmeier, Secretary of State Cord Byrd, and Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia.

Georgia: Attorney General Chris Carr and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

Louisiana: Attorney General Liz Murrill, Secretary of State Nancy Landry, Auditor Michael Waguespack, and Inspector General Angele Davis.

Mississippi: Attorney General Lynn Fitch, Secretary of State Michael Watson, Auditor Shad White, and Treasurer David McRae.

North Carolina: Attorney General Jeff Jackson and Auditor Dave Boliek.

South Carolina: Governor Henry McMaster, Attorney General Alan Wilson, Secretary of State Mark Hammond, Treasurer Curtis Loftis, Inspector General Sean Fay, and Director for South Carolina Department of Social Services Tony Catone.

U.S. Attorneys Offices: Northern District of Alabama, Middle District of Alabama, Southern District of Alabama, Northern District of Florida, Middle District of Florida, Southern District of Florida, Northern District of Georgia, Middle District of Georgia, Southern District of Georgia, Eastern District of Louisiana, Middle District of Louisiana, Western District of Louisiana, Northern District of Mississippi, Southern District of Mississippi, Eastern District of North Carolina, Middle District of North Carolina, Western District of North Carolina, and District of South Carolina.

Federal Agencies: U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Secretary Stephen Vaden, FBI Assistant Director Heith Janke, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Assistant Director James Harris, Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General William Kirk, and USDA Inspector General John Walk.

These partnerships and actions demonstrate how state and federal partners can work together to strengthen fraud detection, share information, and accelerate enforcement efforts nationwide. The Department encourages every state across the country to partner with the Fraud Division on similar efforts.

Federal and State Partners Represented at the 2026 Southeast Fraud Enforcement Partnership Event

Cases

Alabama

Northern District of Alabama led by U.S. Attorney Phillip Williams, United States vs. Michael Shine. Michael Shine is a tax preparer based in the Birmingham area who owns and operates Shine's Professional Services. He has filed and caused to be filed literally thousands of tax returns falsely claiming energy tax credits that were baseless and fraudulent, causing almost $70 million in loss as charged in a complaint.

Example of "Self-Prepared" Attestation Seized During Search Warrant From United States vs. Michael Shine.

Middle District of Alabama led by U.S. Attorney Thomas Govan, United States v Kevin Padgett et al. Kevin Padgett and co-defendants were charged in a mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracy in connection with their scheme to sell approximately $7 million counterfeit U.S. Postage Stamps.

Southern District of Alabama led by U.S. Attorney Sean Costello, United States v. Nia Bradley, et al. Five defendants, Nia Bradley, Randy Burden, Steve Jones, Larry Knight, and Dejuan Lamar, board members and employees of the Prichard, Alabama Water and Sewer Works, created false invoices for work that was never performed and created fictitious construction companies for the purpose of defrauding the utility for a total loss amount of roughly $2.5 million.

Florida

Northern District of Florida led by U.S. Attorney John Heekin, United States v. Lekishaan Huggins. The former manager of the Tallahassee Housing Authority used former tenants' Personally Identifiable Information (PII) to fraudulently obtain U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rent subsidies for a total case loss of just over $500,000. As charged, Huggins used fraudulently obtained funds to sustain her luxurious lifestyle, including vacations, buying luxury apparel and jewelry, and having a celebrity chef cater her private Christmas party.

Middle District of Florida led by U.S. Attorney Greg Kehoe, United States vs. Daniel Liburdi. Daniel Liburdi pled guilty in the Middle District of Florida to filing a false tax return and agreed to restitution of nearly $35 million and forfeiture including multiple properties in Miami Beach and the U.S. Virgin Islands and three luxury vehicles (Land Rover Range Rover, a Ferrari 812 and a Ferrari F8).

Alleged Ferrari 812 and Ferrari F8 vehicles from United States vs. Daniel Liburdi. Alleged Virgin Islands property from United States vs. Daniel Liburdi. Alleged Miami Beach property from United States vs. Daniel Liburdi.

Southern District of Florida led by U.S. Attorney Jason Quiñones, United States vs. Rajaie Ali et al. Defendants Rajaie Ahmad Ali, Sami Jamhour, Cristian Amaro, and Adel Amro concocted a scheme to use willing food stamp recipients to sell their EBT stamp benefits at a discounted rate for cash. The scheme, launched in 2019, caused nearly $20 million in fraudulent EBT transactions at a Kwik Stop convenience store in Miami. Two of the indicted co-conspirators are foreign nationals. Defendant Ali is even subject to a final order of removal from the United States.

Alleged Kwik Stop location responsible for multi-millions in SNAP Benefits Fraud from United States vs. Rajaie Ali et al.

Georgia

Northern District of Georgia led by U.S. Attorney Theodore Hertzberg, United States v. Ian Patrick Jackson. Defendant Ian Patrick Jackson pled guilty for running a fraud and money laundering scheme that stole more than $3 million in CARES Act funds administered by the SBA in the form of PPP and EIDL loans. Jackson has twice been convicted of previous fraud felonies, recruited at least nine business owners into his scheme to submit fraudulent applications, and spent the proceeds on personal expenses, including restaurant dining, spa services, phone and credit card bills, and travel to California, Texas, and Aruba.

Southern District of Georgia led by U.S. Attorney Meg Heap, United States v Melanie Charise Thompson and Toriono Laselle Byrd. Defendant Thompson was indicted for orchestrating a scheme to defraud the Hinesville Housing Authority (HHA) of millions of dollars by using HHA funds to pay her former boyfriend for work that he never completed or paid him far in excess of what he should have been paid for work that was completed, sometimes in return for kickbacks. Purchases from fraud proceeds included custom jewelry worth over $100,000, a gold bracelet, a diamond ring, a Porsche Panamera, a Cadillac Escalade, a Bently Flying Spur, real estate, a hot tub, and tickets to a Janet Jackson concert, reaching nearly $3 million in loss.

Louisiana

Eastern District of Louisiana led by U.S. Attorney David Courcelle, United States vs. Spivey. Spivey was sentenced for his role in a conspiracy to commit health care fraud. Spivey conspired with his codefendant, Jamie McNamara, to fraudulently submit $174 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare for medically unnecessary cancer genetic testing and cardiovascular genetic testing. The genetic tests Medicare patients were lured into did not provide them with any answers on their predisposition to life threatening illnesses and cost taxpayers millions of dollars.

Western District of Louisiana led by U.S. Attorney Zach Keller, United States v Patel et. al. Defendants, including former law enforcement officials, spent nearly 10 years manufacturing false crime reports as part of a visa-fraud scheme. The operation netted the officers $5,000 per "victim" and helped hundreds of foreign nationals secure U visas for false crimes.

Middle District of Louisiana led by U.S. Attorney Kurt Wall, United States v Chakesha Scott et al., Chakesha Scott was the CEO of Impact Charter School in Baker Louisiana, which received state and federal funds. Instead of using those funds to benefit the students, Scott and her indicted co-conspirators diverted nearly $1.5 million in federal funds to pay off family members for overinflated contracting invoices, buying herself luxury vehicles, and even paying for her personal travel expenses.

Scott on personal travel in Egypt allegedly using taxpayer funds from United States v Chakesha Scott et al.

Mississippi

Northern District of Mississippi led by U.S. Attorney Scott Leary, United States v. Lakieth Faulkner et al. Lakeith Faulkner was an attorney and an employee of the Small Business Administration (SBA) who, as a part of his actual job, worked with borrowers and was uniquely positioned to understand the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) approval process. Faulkner devised a kickback scheme with co-conspirators including Tierra Scott, a former IRS employee, to generate more than $11.5 million in fraudulent loan payments by the SBA.

Southern District of Mississippi led by U.S. Attorney Baxter Kruger, United States v. Qadir Shabazz, et al. As alleged, federal inmates housed at the Yazoo Federal Correctional Complex conspired to steal unemployment insurance benefits and EIDL funds using falsified identities, generating approximately $4.3 million in losses. Trial is set for February 2027.

North Carolina

Western District of North Carolina led by U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson, United States v. Dumitru. Two Romanian brothers illegally in the United States pled guilty to wire fraud charging them with orchestrating a fraud scheme involving SNAP benefits affecting victims across multiple states, causing nearly $766,000 in loss. A victim reported that she was shopping with her family on their monthly grocery run for approximately $700 of SNAP-eligible items. Because the defendants had used her SNAP benefits, the transaction was denied, and the victim was unable to purchase food or school supplies for her family.

Middle District of North Carolina led by U.S. Attorney Dan Bishop, United States v. Adedayo Afolabi Fateru. Fateru pled guilty as a member of a money laundering ring involving proceeds of various fraud schemes including false applications for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) and false applications for unemployment benefits. He caused nearly $1.7 million in loss.

Eastern District of North Carolina led by U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle, United States v. Mitchell et al. A Robeson County woman (along with seven co-conspirators) who was the owner of a North Carolina tax return preparation business pled guilty to conspiring to prepare false returns claiming fraudulent refunds based on COVID-19 tax credits, causing nearly $25 million in loss.

South Carolina

District of South Carolina led by U.S. Attorney Bryan Stirling, United States v. Misty Dawn Woody. Misty Dawn Woody was charged by indictment for making false statements relating to healthcare matters. In her role as an employee for Vital Care, a medical patient transport service, Woody allegedly copied and forged a physician's signature on over one hundred certification forms for patients that were no longer under that physician's care. She submitted those forms to Medicare causing over $1.8 million in false and fraudulent billing.

On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (Fraud Division). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department's work to combat fraud supports President Trump's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

An indictment, information, or complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.