Worth County man accused of unemployment fraud

FERTILE — A man from Fertile has been arrested for unemployment benefit fraud. 45-year-old Jason Berding is accused of illegally receiving a total of 54 weeks of state unemployment insurance benefits, totaling over $17,300 between February 2015 and June 2018.

Berding was arrested on Wednesday and charged with first-degree fraudulent practice, a Class C felony. Online court records show that Berding made his initial court appearance on Thursday, but no future court date is listed.

If convicted, Berding could face up to ten years in prison as well as owe restitution plus a 15-percent penalty of almost $2600.