Robin Folsom atlanta Georgia political party affiliation, fake pregnancy
Ex-Georgia state official: Officials say that she wore a fake pregnancy belly while on paid leave.
Robin Folsom had never given birth to a child, according to the Georgia Office of the Inspector General. A review of medical and insurance records found no evidence that she did.
Ex-governor: A woman is accused of wearing a fake pregnancy belly as part of a paid leave scheme, officials said Monday.
She was indicted last week on three counts of false statements and one count of identity fraud for allegedly making up multiple pregnancies and using a fake baby bump, the Georgia Office of the Inspector General said in a press release. She allegedly used a fake baby bump that was later found out about by a co-worker.
In Chris Carr's words: "Fraud by state employees will not be tolerated." "With the help of Georgia's independent Inspector General, we were able to find out about, investigate, and stop this alleged deception. To protect taxpayer money, we will always stand up for what we believe in. We look forward to going to court and making our case."
She was the former Director of External Affairs for the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency. Folsom told her coworkers that she was pregnant in October 2020, and in May 2021, Folsom said that she had given birth. A man who said he was the father of the child later told the agency that Folsom should be forced to take a few weeks off after giving birth, officials said.
People who work for a government agency got about seven weeks of paid leave that the agency "wouldn't have approved."
A short time after that, the inspector general's office said that her alleged plan began to fall apart.
An investigation found that in March 2021, a coworker saw the lower part of Folsom's stomach "come away" from her body, which made her think she was wearing a fake pregnant stomach.
Folsom also sent pictures of her new baby to people at the agency. The inspector general's office said that the pictures "appeared to be inconsistent and depicted children with different skin tones."
Medical and insurance records did not show that Folsom ever gave birth to a child, the release said.
A child was born in July 2020, Folsom said. In August 2021, Folsom said she was pregnant again.
Folsom resigned in October 2021 after he met with state investigators and talked about his job. When Bran Otmembebwe was indicted, the New York Post said that the father of her child was made up.
People in the state government, and especially those who talk to the media and other people on behalf of their agency, should always act with honesty and integrity, said State Inspector General Scott McAfee. "OIG will keep holding state employees accountable if they lie to their superiors and get more money than they deserve."