Santwon Antonio Davis, Morror, Georgia man pleads guilty to faking COVID-19 diagnosis to defraud Fortune 500 employer. Company took over $100,000 hit.
A Georgia man who faked a COVID-19 diagnosis to get out of work has pled guilty to the scheme that cost his employer tens of thousands of dollars, prosecutors said.
Santwon Antonio Davis, 35, of Morrow, pleaded guilty to wire fraud for sending his employer a bogus medical excuse letter about a COVID-19 diagnosis in May, the US Attorney’s Office in Atlanta said Monday.
Upon learning of his supposed test results, his Atlanta-based employer shut down its plant for sanitizing and placed several other employees on paid leave — resulting in a more than $100,000 charges to the business, prosecutors said.
But there was more to come.
Davis later confessed that he never actually contracted the virus while working for the unnamed Fortune 500 company, according to prosecutors.
A history of theft & fraud
‘The defendant caused unnecessary economic loss to his employer and distress to his coworkers and their families,’ US Attorney Byung J. Pak said in a statement.
While investigating the COVID-19 fraud incident, authorities learned of a previous instance in which Davis submitted fraudulent documentation in order to receive benefits from his employer.
In the fall of 2019, Davis reportedly claimed his child had died and submitted documents for a paid bereavement leave, officials said.
‘This child never existed and was fabricated so that the defendant could obtain benefits to which he was not entitled,’ Pak said.
Davis also pleaded guilty to bank fraud for submitting false information to a mortgage company.
While he was out on bond for the wire fraud charge, Davis submitted a mortgage application that included false earnings and employment history, prosecutors said.
The scheme fell apart after news reports about the worker’s bogus COVID-19 diagnosis helped the company uncover that fraud, prosecutors said.
Since 2006 Davis has served three stints in prison, totaling nearly 18 months in custody, according to Georgia Department of Corrections records. In Clayton and Spalding counties, Davis has been convicted of theft by taking, theft by receiving, criminal trespassing and criminal damage to property.
He was most recently released from prison on Feb. 27, 2019, GDC records show.
His sentencing date has not been set yet.
