Pulaski Co. woman pleads guilty to bankruptcy fraud

PULASKI COUNTY, IL (KFVS) - A Pulaski County, Illinois woman pleaded guilty to bankruptcy fraud.

Jessica A. Browning, 44, of Ullin, was indicted in August 2018. The case against Browning arose out of a chapter 13 bankruptcy case she filed in the federal bankruptcy court in Benton, Ill. on March 17, 2014.

During her plea hearing, Browning admitted that on a document she filed with the bankruptcy court, she intentionally concealed the fact that just three weeks before filing bankruptcy she had received a $12,675.47 worker’s compensation award.

She also admitted that at a meeting of creditors in her bankruptcy case, she provided false testimony regarding what she did with the funds from her worker’s compensation award.

Browning pleaded guilty to making a false statement under penalty of perjury in a bankruptcy case and making a false statement under oath in a bankruptcy case. Both carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

She will be sentenced on January 30, 2019 at 10 a.m. at the federal district courthouse in Benton, Ill.