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A Texas woman has admitted to conspiring to commit wire fraud through Instagram. The Concho Valley Homepage reported that Desiree Coleman, 22, used her Instagram page, which has more than 3,000 followers, to conspire with others to commit wire fraud.
Coleman was allegedly planning to submit false applications for government assistance, according to a release from the US Attorney's office of the Southern District of Texas.
Coleman plead guilty to the act. A judge accepted her plea and she is scheduled to be sentenced on Monday, May 1st.
Coleman faces up to five years in federal prison as well as a possible $250,000 maximum fine. She was permitted to remain on bond pending her hearing.
Coleman used her platform to instruct others on how to defraud government programs between March and December of 2020. According to prosecutors, she even applied for others using false representations.
Coleman would allegedly charge others a fee for fraudulently filing applications for them, prosecutors say.
Coleman advertised her services on her Instagram stories. According to the USAO, Coleman's private messages were filled with conversations with clients about FEMA and unemployment fraud schemes.