Indictment says Matteson man filed nearly 300 fake jobless claims

A Matteson man used the personal information of others to file nearly 300 fraudulent claims for unemployment benefits that netted him $174,000, according to a federal indictment.

Darronte Reggans, 33, is charged with 10 counts of wire fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft, according to the U.S. attorney's office in Chicago.

He pleaded not guilty to the charges during an initial appearance Feb. 1 in federal court following a bench warrant that had been issued for his arrest Dec. 21, when the indictment was filed, according to court records.

Reggans was released after his arraignment and is next due to appear March 1, according to the U.S. attorney.

According to the indictment, Reggans obtained unemployment insurance benefits from the Illinois Department of Employment Security using the names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth and other personal information from other people without their knowledge to file claims for jobless benefits.

In total, Reggans had filed claims for benefits totaling at least $3.6 million, according to the U.S. attorney.

Reggans' fraud scheme started around March 2015 and continued until September 2017, according to the indictment.

In filing the benefits claims, Reggans requested payment from the Illinois Department of Employment Security through benefit cards, which he used to make withdrawals from bank automated teller machines in locations including Richton Park and South Chicago Heights, according to the indictment.

He used the state-supplied debit cards to make withdrawals totaling nearly $8,400 from ATMs in those two suburbs from late December 2016 through late July 2017, according to the indictment.

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