Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser has announced that a Colorado man will spend three years in prison for fraud and identity theft. Ryan Gerald Garbiso illicitly claimed unemployment benefits and filed a false tax return, stealing the identities of two deceased individuals. As a result, he has agreed to a plea deal to cover two felonies and will pay back $25,051, the total amount he fraudulently claimed in unemployment benefits. He will also pay $1,684 in relation to the false tax return. This conviction is a part of the broader effort by the Colorado Unemployment Fraud Task Force, an entity established by Weiser in 2021 to combat fraud against the state’s unemployment insurance programme.

Garbiso allegedly stole personal information from two deceased individuals to file unemployment claims in their name. He received $14,283 in unemployment benefits in the name of a deceased family member of his ex-girlfriend, Mandy Baros, and $10,768 in the name of his deceased ex-wife. He was able to access these funds through his own bank accounts. The case was filed in Adams County District Court with information gathered by the Colorado Unemployment Fraud Task Force.