8 women sentenced to prison in multi-million dollar Lumberton Covid fraud

LUMBERTON, NC (WMBF) - Multiple people have been charged in a nearly $24 million dollar Covid fraud scheme in North Carolina.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said that a federal judge sentenced Nejlai Mitchell, 48, to five years in federal prison for conspiring to prepare false tax returns that claimed fraudulent refunds based on COVID‑19 tax credits and for assisting in the preparation of additional fake returns.

Mitchell pleaded guilty to conspiracy and preparing and filing false tax returns.

She has been ordered her to pay a Forfeiture Money Judgment of $13,890,697.

Authorities say seven co-conspirators have already pleaded guilty for their roles in the same covid fraud scheme, and five have been sentenced.

Mitchell owned and operated tax return preparation offices in Lumberton and Hope Mills.

According to the attorney’s office, from April 2022 through May 2023, Mitchell and seven of her employees filed false tax returns seeking fraudulent refunds in the amount of almost $24 million by exploiting paid sick and family leave credits, a COVID‑19 relief measure enacted by Congress to support struggling businesses.

The tax return preparation business’s office manager, Whitnee Leach, pleaded guilty in May 2026 to participating in the same conspiracy and filing false tax returns.

The remaining six defendants pleaded guilty to preparing and filing false tax returns for clients.

“The nearly $24 million in fraudulent refunds generated through this scheme were not the result of mistakes or oversight. Mitchell and her co-conspirators deliberately stole COVID money intended to help struggling Eastern North Carolinians and used that to enrich themselves at the expense of hardworking taxpayers,” said U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle. “This prison sentence holds Mitchell accountable for her role in a conspiracy that stole taxpayer funds and corrupted the tax filing process. We are paying attention. We will find you. We will prosecute and convict you. You will go to cold steel federal prison. Cheaters. Never. Win.”

In September, the court sentenced Tiffany Moody to over two years.

In July, Shaneen Ray and Eyoubo McBurney were sentenced to 18 months each, Sylvia Swindell to 16 months, and Katrena Stanback to six months.

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