Minnesota Woman Sentenced One Year for 25-Year Social Security Scam

Mavious Redmond, a 54-year-old woman from Austin, Minnesota, was sentenced to a year and one day in prison for a 25-year Social Security fraud scheme in which she impersonated her deceased mother to unlawfully collect over $360,000 in benefits. Starting in 1999 after her mother's death, Redmond used her mother's identity, including Social Security number and date of birth, forged signatures, and even appeared in person as her mother to the Social Security Administration (SSA). Despite being informed by the SSA that she needed to report her mother's death to terminate benefits, Redmond continued to collect payments and also fraudulently obtained $3,200 in COVID-19 Economic Impact Payments distributed by the IRS to her mother’s bank account. Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson condemned the scheme as “brazen and shameless,” emphasizing the broader fraud crisis affecting taxpayer-funded programs. Redmond’s defense highlighted her difficult personal circumstances and modest income, characterizing the crime as a desperate act rather than one of hardened criminality. After serving her prison sentence, Redmond will be subject to supervised release for one year.