Crime
Miami influencer pleads guilty to million-dollar COVID-19 aid scam
Danielle Miller boasted of her extravagant lifestyle on her Instagram account, where she had more than 34,000 followers, according to authorities
March 17, 2023 10:10am
Updated: March 17, 2023 10:10am
Miami (South Florida) influencer Danielle Miller, 32, pleaded guilty earlier this month to obtaining more than $1.5 million in coronavirus relief funds from the U.S. government by stealing the identities of at least 10 people.
During a hearing in a Southern District of Florida hearing, Miller confessed to stealing identities and using false business names to apply for and receive more than $1 million in hardship loan proceeds, as well as 'Pandemic Unemployment Assistance' and unemployment benefits related from July 2020 to May 202, according to a statement released by the United States Dept. of Justice.
Miller reportedly forged driver's licenses in the names of the victims with her photograph, according to authorities.
In one case, she accessed a victim's Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles online records and used the personally identifiable information to open a bank account in that person's name, prosecutors said.
Miller used a forged driver's license in August 2020 to arrange a flight on a Gulfstream private jet from Florida to California, where she stayed at a luxury hotel bearing the victim's namesake, prosecutors said.
In another case, prosecutors said she used someone else's identity to rent a luxury apartment in Florida.
Miller boasted of his extravagant lifestyle on his Instagram account, where he had more than 34,000 followers, according to authorities, posting his purchases of luxury items and his stays at opulent California hotels, which he paid for with the bank account of one of their victims.
Miller was arrested in May 2021, pleaded guilty on March 6, and is scheduled to be sentenced on July 27.
