Borough employee and family facing charges for alleged unemployment fraud

HOMESTEAD, Pa. — An Allegheny County borough employee is facing additional criminal charges from the State Attorney General’s Office.

Channel 11 exclusively reported earlier this year when Shunta Parms, a code enforcement officer with Homestead Borough, was accused of unemployment fraud.

Now, court documents reveal that Parms is facing additional charges for filing Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claims on behalf of her two juvenile sons. Her husband, Delorean Parms, and her sister, Shanese Burt, are also accused of trying to scam the system. Criminal complaints claim that collectively, they received upwards of $57,000 in benefits, all while earning paychecks.

According to documents, in at least one instance, an IP address was traced to Homestead Borough, indicating Shunta Parms filed a claim while at work.

Following the first set of charges, Shunta Parms was moved to an administrative role. Sources tell us she is still employed.

We reached out to the borough’s solicitor, Sam Dalfonso for a response, and asked what Shunta Parms’ duties consist of, and what sort of access she has to sensitive borough information.

Dalfonso replied, “No comment at this time, but we are aware of and are reviewing the complaint against Ms. Parms.”

Channel 11 also visited the borough offices on Tuesday. We were told that Ms. Parms was not in. We requested to speak with the borough manager, but she apparently declined to speak with us.

We left messages with respective attorneys listed for Parms and her sister. At last check, her husband’s court docket did not list an attorney.

Pittsburgh preparing for Clemente Bridge rehab project; officials want to hear from you

©2021 Cox Media Group