A Fresno woman pleaded guilty Friday to more than $300,000 in pandemic relief fraud, including loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Using stolen identities, Cecilia Aquino, 34, submitted fraudulent unemployment insurance claims in at least seven states as well as applications for SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loans, according to a news release for U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert.

According to federal court documents, between June and November of 2020, Aquino submitted the unemployment claims and Covid loan applications that contained several misrepresentations, including that the named individuals last worked as self-employed dancers, owned interior design businesses and that they lost their jobs and business revenues because of the pandemic.

The state agencies that administer the unemployment insurance system, the SBA, and the United States suffered an actual loss of $220,000 and were subject to a potential loss of more than $300,000 because of Aquino’s fraud. Aquino used the money for gambling, rent, shopping, and other personal expenditures.

This case is the product of an investigation by the FBI, SBA Office of Inspector General and the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Barton is prosecuting the case.

Aquino is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston on Feb. 21, 2023. Aquino faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and fine of up to $250,000 for the unemployment insurance and SBA loan fraud, and a mandatory two-year consecutive sentence for the identity theft. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court.

This effort is part of a California COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Strike Force operation, one of three such interagency teams established by the U.S. Department of Justice. The California Strike Force combines law enforcement and prosecutorial resources in the Eastern and Central Districts of California and focuses on large-scale, multistate pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors. The strike forces use prosecutor-led and data analyst-driven teams to identify and bring to justice those who stole pandemic relief funds, according to a news release.