LOS ANGELES 
A former Amtrak employee, Lizette Berrios Lathon, 48, of Moreno Valley, was sentenced to 25 months in federal prison and ordered to pay over $1 million in restitution for her role in a massive COVID-19 unemployment fraud and related scams, officials announced Thursday.
Lathon and her husband, Kenneth Andrew Lathon, 50, fraudulently obtained nearly $1 million in pandemic-related unemployment benefits by filing at least 44 false claims through California’s EDD.
Many claims used stolen identities from clients of Lizette’s tax preparation businesses—Hardcore Taxes, LL Taxes, and Miracle Tax Service—without their consent.
Using false income information, they secured maximum benefits under the CARES Act. The debit cards tied to these claims were mailed to addresses controlled by the Lathons, who used them for cash withdrawals and retail purchases.
Lizette Lathon also fraudulently claimed over $63,000 in sickness benefits from the Railroad Retirement Board by submitting forged documents while working at Amtrak from 2000 to 2021.
Kenneth Lathon, a convicted felon with prior theft, drug, and fraud charges, was also sentenced to 54 months in prison for his role in the scheme and for illegal possession of firearms.
Both pleaded guilty in 2022.