What a lovely couple.
Posted on 08/20/2026 12:48:08 PM PDT by Libloather
WASHINGTON — They’re a shady bunch.
A California family that swindled $18 million in COVID-19 relief cash to splurge on various trappings — including a Harley-Davidson, diamonds and luxury homes — inspired a Senate crackdown on so-called “fraudster families.”
Two of the family members, Richard Ayvazyan and his wife, Marietta Terabelian, cut off their ankle bracelets and ditched their three children via a goodbye note to flee the US after being convicted on fraud charges, before being caught in Montenegro.
Years later, the saga inspired Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), who has led the Senate DOGE Caucus, to push for legislation cutting off so-called “fraud families” from government aid.
The No Cash for Cohabitating Kins of Crooks Act bars individuals who live with convicted criminals or fraudsters cut off from federal grants, loans, subawards, or reimbursements from getting that money.
The legislation includes a carve-out for spouses who live separately from someone or survivors of domestic abuse.
“Committing fraud is literally all relative for these families of felons,” Ernst told The Post. “My latest investigation found schemes sprouting from family trees across the country, with kin teaming up to rip off taxpayers to the tune of $50 million."
The retiring Hawkeye State Republican highlighted 15 “fraudster families” she dubbed a “shady bunch” in her Squeal Award for August, which she hands out monthly to spotlight government waste, fraud and abuse.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
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I didn’t know she was leaving the Senate. So she took over from Senator Proxmire from years - many years back - and his Golden Fleece Award. WHO will take on the job now - sure hope someone steps into the void and doesn’t let up so it becomes forgotten again.
The first family mentioned were certainly foreigners but from what country? Foreigners bring their crooked ways with them to this country - it’s what they’ve learned in their own countries. Iranians and used car lots were a big thing in southern CA...DMV had lots of problems with them.
That Edwards family in the article is a mixed bag of something - appear to be all different ancestry or nationalities. The father a pastor??? WOW.
The family that commits fraud together stays together - for AWHILE anyway. Doesn’t seem like their sentences were enough to teach them anything.
Everyone went unnoticed and not investigated? As the saying goes, “Is this a great country or what?”
Armenians from the SF Valley. Shocker.
Why do we need a new bill to go after people who defrauded the gov’t?
The fraudster families are IN Congress. And State Legislatures.
What a lovely couple.
“Why do we need a new bill to go after people who defrauded the gov’t?”
This, you see, is the modus for CA politicians to garner headlines and give the impression that “they care”. In CA, it’s already plenty illegal to abduct a child, say. But if you abduct a child and fail to properly provide them the age-appropriate child-restraint seat in your getaway car, then there’s probably an 18-month sentencing enhancement that legislators will argue over for at least 8 months and in the dozen or so cases per year it applies, will inevitably be dismissed from any legal charges.
Pay our party or go to JAIL!
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