Maryland Man Pleads Guilty in Tax and COVID Fraud Conspiracy: At Least $3.5M in False Refund Claims, Over $550,000 in UI Benefits
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on November 3 that Dekwii Woah-Tee, 43, of Rosedale, Maryland, pled guilty in federal court to conspiracy to submit false, fictitious, and fraudulent claims to the Internal Revenue Service; wire-fraud conspiracy in connection with Unemployment Insurance (UI) claims; and aggravated identity theft, stemming from a scheme to fraudulently obtain UI benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic. The prosecution is part of the administration's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud. U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Kelly O. Hayes announced the plea with IRS Criminal Investigation's Washington, D.C. Field Office, the Labor Department's Office of Inspector General and the Homeland Security Department's Office of Inspector General.
According to the plea agreement, from January 2018 through December 2024, Woah-Tee and his co-conspirators recruited customers for their tax-return business and obtained those individuals' tax documentation and personal identifiable information, then filed false Form 1040 returns containing fabricated information about dependents, income, education expenses and Earned Income Tax Credit eligibility. The conspirators illegally sought at least $3.5 million in refunds, with IRS funds deposited into bank accounts or delivered to addresses they controlled.
During the pandemic, Woah-Tee and his co-conspirator Daiwor Woah-Tee submitted UI applications to the Maryland Department of Labor on behalf of victims, often without the victims' knowledge, falsely stating that the applicants were entitled to benefits. The conspirators received UI benefits in excess of $550,000, deposited into accounts they controlled. Daiwor Woah-Tee pled guilty in June 2026 to charges connected with his role in the conspiracy.
As part of the plea, Dekwii Woah-Tee agreed to restitution of $3.5 million to the IRS and at least $550,000 to the Maryland Department of Labor, and to a forfeiture of approximately $250,000. He faces a maximum of 10 years in federal prison for the false-claims conspiracy, 20 years for the wire-fraud conspiracy, and a mandatory two years for aggravated identity theft; a federal district court judge will determine sentencing under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jared W. Murphy and Matthew P. Phelps are prosecuting the case, which was investigated by IRS-CI, DOL-OIG and DHS-OIG.
(Source: U.S. Department of Justice)
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于华盛顿的美国司法部总部罗伯特·F·肯尼迪大楼。APK 摄，CC BY 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building, headquarters of the U.S. Department of Justice, in Washington. Photo by APK, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
