The applications, filed between November 2020 and November 2022 through the county’s CARES Act and Emergency Rental Assistance programs, all required applicants to certify their information was accurate and warned that falsification could lead to prosecution for fraud. According to the OIG’s investigative report, the woman submitted letters purportedly from her employers — including Napleton Auto Group and Manheim/Cox Automotive — claiming reduced work hours due to the pandemic. Human resources staff at both companies told investigators the letters were never written or signed by them, and that the woman’s hours were never actually cut the way the documents claimed.
Palm Beach County Community Services flagged the case and referred it to the Office of Inspector General after denying the sixth application over an altered employer letter and the applicant’s failure to produce requested bank statements. When investigators interviewed the woman, she admitted writing several of the fake letters herself and signing her manager’s name, saying she was working four jobs to make ends meet as a single mother. She told the OIG she believed her real pay records wouldn’t have qualified her for the aid.
The county has issued more than $19,300 in rental and food assistance payments tied to the applications, most of which went directly to the woman’s landlord. The OIG is recommending the county seek full reimbursement and tighten its review process, including requiring more documentation before approving rental assistance that exceeds what an applicant requested. The woman is currently repaying the money on a $150-a-month schedule, according to the report, and told investigators she wants to “put all of this behind me.”…