With a name like Granny’s Pray & Play for a daycare, could there be anything else offered but crafts, sing-alongs and homemade snacks in a loving environment? Yes. So much more. Like real life applications on how to commit fraud and what happens when caught.
Patricia L Johnson-Rushing the owner of Granny’s Pray & Play, had six children who were approved to receive childcare subsidy for a federally funded program intended to help low-income families access early childcare and after-school programs. While parents of adopted children are eligible to receive the childcare subsidy, owners of a childcare center cannot be paid for services provided to their own children. But it didn’t stop Johnson-Rushing from submitting $83,000 in false claims to the Missouri Department of Social Services. Guessing Chapman needed the money to fund the teachers who were watching her kids while she committed more fraud.
Granny’s Pray & Play had about fifteen employees. From the beginning of 2015 to the end of 2018, Johnson-Rushing withheld federal income tax and FICA contributions from their paychecks yet failed to pay those taxes to the Internal Revenue Service. Nothing says “Teacher Appreciation” like stealing their payroll taxes. The total loss for failure to pay over employee tax yields led to a loss of $653,329. During this time, Johnsonson-Rushing was also submitting applications to the state of Missouri Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program where she claimed to have no job or bank account. Although she did withdraw funds from Granny’s Pray & Play bank account to purchase a Cadillac Escalade. Johnson-Rushing fraudulently received $12,310 in SNAP benefits.
On May 24, 2024, Johnson-Rushing, 55, was sentenced to two years and three months for theft of public money, benefits fraud, and conspiracy to defraud the United States, and full restitution of $800,000. Her bankruptcy petition that she filed in June of 2023 will also be dismissed since she failed to mention her court cases for fraud.
Great job by the U.S Department Health Human Services Office Inspector General IRS Criminal Investigation with this case.
Today’s Fraud of The Day is based on article “Kansas City daycare owner sentenced for fraud scheme totaling over $770K” published by KC Reporter on May 24, 2024.
A Kansas City day care owner was sentenced in federal court today for her role in a conspiracy that resulted in a $653,329 tax loss to the federal government and fraudulently collecting almost $120,000 in government benefits she was not entitled to receive.
Patricia L. Johnson-Rushing, 55, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to two years and three months in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Johnson-Rushing to pay $772,861 in restitution and to forfeit $95,704 to the government.
