Overview

• Natonia Johnson, 52, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty on Sept. 17 to one count of wire fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland.
• Prosecutors said she helped friends, family members, and strangers secure benefits they were not eligible to receive between June 2020 and November 2021 in exchange for $200 to $500 per person.
• While staffing the Maryland Department of Labor’s unemployment insurance call center as a contractor, she accessed the internal database to strip ineligibility flags, remove fraud holds, backdate claims, and cause additional payments.
• Earlier in the scheme, she uploaded fraudulent documents and falsely asserted that applicants were self-employed to qualify under pandemic-era programs.
• Losses exceeded $250,000 to Maryland’s unemployment system, and Johnson faces up to 20 years in prison with three years of supervised release, with sentencing set for Jan. 6, 2026.