Jackson woman pleads guilty to FEMA fraud

Williams

AJackson woman has pleaded guilty to charges that she defrauded the Federal Emergency Management Agency out of more than $277,000 by filing fraudulent disaster claims following Hurricane Katrina, which struck the Gulf Coast in August of last year.

According to an article in the Sept. 21 edition of the Mobile Register, Lawanda Trena Williams, 32, appeared in U.S. District Court in Mobile, Sept. 20, where she entered a guilty plea in connection with 28 fraudulent claims she made for disaster assistance following the Aug. 29, 2005 storm. She had entered a not guilty plea when she was arraigned in August of this year. Her trial had originally been set for October.

In July, when FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) agents arrived to search Williams' home, she fled the

scene, exiting through the back door of the residence and running into the woods. The FBI offered a $1,000 reward for information leading to her arrest, but she later turned herself in to authorities.

Williams is accused of illegally receiving $277,377 from FEMA for damage allegedly done to her Dove Lane home by the hurricane. According to the charges filed, on a number of occasions, she used several spelling variations of her first name, combined with her maiden name and her married name to file the false claims. She is also accused of using addresses in Alabama, Mississippi, Florida and Louisiana on FEMA applications.

Investigators from the Department of Homeland Security said Williams filed at least 20 false claims, beginning in Sept. of 2005 and continuing through January of this year. Federal officials have stated that she used the money to purchase real estate, a mobile home, automobiles, appliances, pay for construction services, furniture, electronics and other items.

The plea deal includes allowing Williams to forfeit several items to count toward the amount of restitution she owes. Those include the mobile home, property located on Jackie and Linda Road, a 2005 model Nissan Altima, 1999 Ford Mustang, 2001 Ford Taurus, 50-inch Toshiba television, a Sanyo television, DVD player, desktop scanner and an ADT security monitor.

Her sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 24.

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