A new state audit shows more than half the money paid out by Illinois from a special pandemic unemployment fund was given to fraudsters. The state auditor general’s report says fraudulent pandemic unemployment claims cost the state nearly two-billion-dollars in federal money meant to help out-of-work Illinoisans. The audit covers July 2020 through June 2021. The Illinois Department of Employment Security acknowledged in November 2020 that more than 212-thousand fraudulent claims had been filed, but never released a dollar estimate on the theft.
***Report Courtesy of Total Traffic News***
