Orange County Woman Sentenced to 15 Months in Prison for Stealing Social Security Benefits Intended for the Disabled and Elderly

          LOS ANGELES – A former Social Security Administration (SSA) employee who stole more than $176,000 in Social Security benefits designated for elderly and disabled people was sentenced today to 15 months in federal prison.

          Rowena Isabel Lokeni, 36, of Garden Grove, was sentenced by United States District Judge John F. Walter, who also ordered her to pay $176,015 in restitution to the SSA. Lokeni pleaded guilty last October to one count of wire fraud. She resigned from the SSA shortly after her arrest in this case last September.

          The SSA hired Lokeni in 2007, and she worked as a lead customer service representative in the administration’s field office in Fountain Valley. She was responsible for providing direct services to the public, including determining the nature of a visit or call, resolving problems, screening for eligibility, and explaining benefit inquiries. In that capacity, Lokeni had computer access to electronic records of SSA beneficiaries.

          From her work cubicle, between April 2017 and August 2019, Lokeni accessed the SSA computer databases and queried the records of 10 Social Security beneficiaries. Once she accessed the victims’ records, Lokeni fraudulently changed each victim’s direct deposit bank account and routing numbers to instead reflect her personal bank account’s routing and account numbers.

          Of the 10 victims whose Social Security benefits were affected by Lokeni’s fraud, eight victims were supposed to be receiving disabled adult children benefits because they were unmarried adults who had a disability that began prior to their 22nd birthday. Many of these victims have severe intellectual disabilities and were staying at adult care facilities. The ninth victim was supposed to be receiving disability insurance benefits, while the 10th victim was supposed to be receiving retirement insurance benefits.

          Lokeni has admitted to fraudulently obtaining a total of approximately $176,015 in Social Security payments.

          “[Lokeni’s] actions evinced an utter disregard for the responsibility of her position, for the hardworking Americans who pay their fair share to sustain the SSA program benefits, and for the most vulnerable members of society,” the prosecution wrote in a sentencing memorandum.

          Social Security Administration – Office of the Inspector General investigated this matter.

          This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David H. Chao of the Major Frauds Section.