An inmate at the state prison for women in Shakopee was charged with theft and fraud, allegedly allowing her to collect more than $60,000 in government assistance while in prison.
Pamela Ann Williams, 56, was charged with two counts of theft — falsely obtaining government assistance — and three counts of theft by deception over a scheme that allowed her to collect thousands of dollars operated by the state since she was incarcerated in January 2024.
Court documents include the following details:
Under the scheme, Williams was listed as a recipient of care from a personal care provider beginning when she was sent to jail in a domestic violence case. The personal care provider she mentioned lived in Chicago. The payments the man received were eventually sent back to Williams in prison through a third person. In addition, while in prison, Williams continued to receive government benefits, including $59,269 in medical assistance, $2,619 in food assistance, and $1,837 in general assistance.
“We are grateful that fraud prevention measures from the state Department of Human Services identified the suspicious activity and that this matter was referred for criminal investigation,” Ramsey County Attorney John Choi said in a news release.
Choi said the investigation in St. Paul is ongoing “as it relates to holding accountable other participants in this alleged scheme to defraud our public assistance programs.”
Williams is expected to appear in court on the charges in January.
