A former U.S. Department of Labor employee pleaded guilty on May 12 in federal court in Boston to fraudulently obtaining more than $40,000 in pandemic unemployment assistance benefits.
Mo Yuong Kang, age 50 and formerly of Woburn and Dracut, Massachusetts, admitted guilt to four counts of wire fraud. U.S. District Court Judge Brian E. Murphy scheduled sentencing for August 11. Kang was indicted by a federal grand jury in August 2025.
Prosecutors said Kang worked as an Industrial Hygienist with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration from June 2016 until July 2023 and earned over $85,000 annually during the period he submitted false claims for pandemic aid. In April 2020, Kang filed a fraudulent application with the Division of Unemployment Assistance claiming that he was self-employed or a gig worker whose work had been severely limited by COVID-19 and that he had not earned more than $89 per week since March 8, 2020. The agency approved his claim based on this application and subsequent weekly certifications stating he did not work or receive income during those weeks. As a result, Kang received $45,868 in benefits for which he was not eligible.
The charge of wire fraud carries a potential sentence of up to twenty years in prison, three years supervised release, and a fine up to $250,000. Sentencing will be determined according to federal guidelines.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Anthony P. D’Esposito, Special Agent in Charge at the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General; and Christopher Silvestro from the Defense Criminal Investigative Service announced the plea agreement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristina E. Barclay is prosecuting the case.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) established temporary federal unemployment insurance known as Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) for people not eligible for standard unemployment benefits during COVID-19 disruptions.
The U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts enforces federal laws through prosecutions including national security threats and civil rights violations; advances community initiatives on civil rights; maintains offices at the John Joseph Moakley United States Federal Courthouse in Boston as well as Springfield and Worcester; employs over two hundred staff members; serves all residents across Massachusetts; handles both criminal prosecutions and civil litigation for the United States; promotes public safety statewide; engages communities directly through its offices; traces its origins back to one of America’s earliest such entities founded in 1789—according to the official website.
