A Washington man has pleaded guilty to fraudulently collecting pandemic unemployment benefits across nearly 20 states, one of several cases announced as part of a massive nationwide crackdown on COVID-era fraud. His name is Tyler Lee Berens.
Berens entered his guilty plea in July 2026, and the case was announced publicly by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington as part of a broader enforcement action. He’s scheduled for sentencing on October 5, 2026.
What He Admitted To
Berens admitted to fraudulently applying for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance benefits in 19 different states. Through that scheme, he collected $148,206.
That’s a pretty wide spread for one person to pull off, filing claims across almost 20 states rather than just one, which suggests a fairly deliberate effort to maximize how much he could collect before anyone caught on.
A Separate Attempt That Didn’t Work
Berens also tried his luck with a Paycheck Protection Program loan, applying for $17,500. That attempt wasn’t successful, so unlike the unemployment benefits scheme, he didn’t actually get that money.
Who Investigated the Case
The case against Berens was investigated by the FBI, the Social Security Administration’s Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General. It’s being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica M. Ly, who is actually an attorney with the Social Security Administration specially designated to prosecute fraud cases like this one in federal court.
Part of a Much Bigger Sweep
Berens’s case was one of several announced together as the Western District of Washington joined a nationwide surge takedown effort exceeding $245 million in COVID-era loan fraud. That effort came out of the Department of Justice’s National Fraud Enforcement Division, established on April 7, 2026, working alongside the Small Business Administration and its Office of Inspector General.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd, commenting on the broader sweep, said every dollar that went to fraud was a dollar that wasn’t available to help small businesses that genuinely struggled to stay afloat during the pandemic. That message runs through pretty much all of these cases, framing pandemic fraud not just as theft from the government, but as money taken away from businesses and workers who actually needed the help.
Where the Case Stands
Since Berens has already entered a guilty plea, the case now moves toward sentencing in early October. What penalty he ultimately receives will depend on how the court weighs the scope of the scheme, including the multi-state nature of the fraud, against typical sentencing guidelines for benefit fraud cases like this one.