A former Georgia official was accused of faking her pregnancy to avail maternity leaves. Her scheme, however, came apart after a colleague noticed the fake bump. The Georgia Office of the Inspector General noted this week that Robin Folsom, 43, even made up a fake baby daddy, who sent an email to her bosses stating she was under doctor's orders for several weeks of bed rest after giving birth in May 2021.
A news release from the IG's office stated that Folsom's lie was caught when a colleague at the state's Vocational Rehabilitation Agency noticed a part of Folsom's fake pregnancy stomach detach from her body. Folsom even sent her colleagues pictures of her supposed 'newborn'. However, the pictures featured babies of 'varying skin tone.'
Folsom, director of external affairs for the agency, was charged with three counts of making false statements and one count of identity fraud, state Attorney General Chris Carr announced this week.
'Fake pregnancy'
Folsom had informed the agency that she had gotten pregnant again in August 2021 after giving birth in July 2020. However, the agency didn't find any records of Folsom giving birth as her insurance records didn't show any pregnancy or delivery. Following the investigation into her fake pregnancy debacle, Folsom resigned from her post in October last year.
According to the indictment against her, Folsom, when interviewed by the investigators in October last year, admitted that Bran Otmembebwe, the made-up father of her non-existent baby was a real person and existed.
'Highest standards of integrity...'
Attorney General Chris Carr released a statement saying that fraud by state employees will not be tolerated. "All state employees, and especially those that communicate with the media and general public on behalf of their agency, should be held to the highest standards of integrity and honesty," IG Scott McAfee said in a statement over the matter.
