2 Alabama Residents Charged With Disaster Benefit Fraud

Two Alabama residents are charged with lying to a federal agency to get disaster aid after last year’s deadly tornado outbreak.

U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance says Angela Michelle Anderson of Tuscaloosa and Donnie Lee Burleson of Hackleburg were indicted Wednesday. Vance says that brings the number of people from northern Alabama charged with tornado-related fraud to 11.

The indictments claim that Anderson and Burleson submitted aid applications to the Federal Emergency Management Agency that included false claims about damages they suffered from the April 27 tornadoes.

Both defendants claimed their homes were damaged by tornadoes.

The FEMA money is intended to help Alabamians who suffered property loss or damage in the tornadoes.