RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- A Richmond man was sentenced on Thursday to over three years for filing false COVID-19 employment benefits claims, receiving more than $600,000 in unentitled funds, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). According to court documents, 36-year-old Makka Garba and co-con spirators filed at least 346 false claims for COVID-19-related unemployment benefits and at least 162 false claims for unemployment insurance benefits between October 2020 and February 2021. In total, the department said they received at least $619,442 in unentitled funds. The department said Garba and co-conspirators filed false claims with at least seven different state workforce agencies in the U.S., including the Virginia Employment Commission. The victims were mostly employed during COVID-19 and were ineligible for these funds. “At a moment of national urgency, Makka Garba and other fraudsters took advantage of the government programs designed to be a lifeline for American families in need,” said Lindsey Halligan, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “My office will vigorously pursue anyone who defrauds governmental programs to line their own pockets.” According to the DOJ, Garba and his co-conspirators received at least $619,442 in unentitled funds and designated electronic payment cards to be mailed to Garba with fraud proceeds -- Garba reportedly withdrew those funds from Richmond-area ATMs. ...read more read less