PHILADELPHIA, PA — A Montgomery County woman who orchestrated a sweeping fraud scheme that siphoned nearly $1.75 million in federal disaster aid after Hurricane Ida was sentenced to five years in prison, federal prosecutors announced Wednesday.
Jasmine Williams, 34, of Plymouth Meeting, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kelley Brisbon Hodge after pleading guilty to 32 federal charges tied to a yearslong plot to defraud the Federal Emergency Management Agency following the 2021 storm.
According to court filings, Williams was charged in April 2024 with one count of fraud related to a major disaster declaration, 24 counts of wire fraud, and seven counts of mail fraud. She pleaded guilty to all counts in September.
Federal prosecutors said the scheme began after President Joseph R. Biden issued a major disaster declaration for large portions of eastern Pennsylvania following Hurricane Ida, authorizing FEMA to distribute financial assistance to residents whose homes and property were damaged.
Williams used social media to recruit participants, advertising that she could help them obtain FEMA benefits. Court records show she targeted renters, homeowners, and even homeless individuals, then submitted fraudulent applications on their behalf using fake leases, forged landlord letters, falsified utility bills, fabricated earnings statements, and bogus home repair estimates.
In exchange for her services, Williams demanded half of any FEMA payout. Prosecutors said she amassed hundreds of thousands of dollars through the arrangement and used intimidation tactics to enforce payment, including publicly posting a participant’s personal information and a lengthy social media video attacking the individual for refusing to pay her share.
Williams also solicited photos of damaged homes online, which were then submitted to FEMA as supporting documentation for fraudulent claims.
The court determined that FEMA paid $1,744,982.64 in disaster assistance based on false representations Williams made between October 2021 and March 2023.
The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, with assistance from FEMA Fraud Prevention and Investigations, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ruth Mandelbaum and S. Chandler Harris.
U.S. Attorney David Metcalf announced the sentence, calling the case a significant example of disaster fraud exploiting federal aid meant for storm victims.
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