California Women Sentenced for COVID Fraud, Birth Tourism Schemes

Lourdes Navarro, a California woman, has been sentenced to nine years in prison and fined $46.7 million for committing fraud by submitting false claims for unnecessary respiratory pathogen panel tests during the Covid-19 pandemic, billing approximately $369 million. In a separate case, Gernesia Williams from Louisiana received a 13-month sentence for misappropriating over $100,000 from the U.S. Small Business Administration's Covid-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan program, spending it on personal luxuries including jewelry and a wedding. Additionally, Phoebe Dong and her husband were sentenced to 41 months in prison for running a birth tourism scheme that coached pregnant Chinese women on how to deceive immigration officials to secure U.S. citizenship for their children. Their operation, USA Happy Baby, helped over 100 women travel to the U.S. between 2012 and 2015, charging substantial fees for their services. The schemes highlight ongoing issues of fraud and abuse related to government relief programs and immigration laws during the pandemic. These cases reflect significant legal repercussions for individuals exploiting federal systems.