Derek L. Sebastiao, 34, with a last known address of 44 Desmont Ct. in Warwick, pled nolo contendere yesterday to one count of obtaining money under false pretenses for collecting over $21,000 in unemployment insurance benefits while he was working for Lonsdale Concrete in Cumberland.  

Sebastiao was sentenced to five years probation and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $21,720 to the State of Rhode Island. 

Had the case proceeded to trial, the state was prepared to prove that, between May 10, 2008 and March 3, 2012, Sebastiao failed to report his weekly earnings to the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training when he called into the DLT Teleserve voice response system to authorize his weekly unemployment benefits.

“While some may see this type of crime as harming no one, the truth is that it harms the taxpayers and hard-working individuals who pay into the system. And, for that, we will aggressively prosecute individuals who steal from the taxpayers,” said Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin.