Members of a Fulton County grand jury have indicted a former top-ranking state official for allegedly and repeatedly lying that she was pregnant just so she could take advantage of the Family and Medical Leave Act.
That woman, Robin Folsom, 43, previously directed external affairs for the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency. This, according to a statement from the Office of the Inspector General (OIG).
“As Director of External Affairs, Folsom supervised GVRA’s marketing and media communications. In October 2020, Folsom informed the human resources division that she was pregnant, and eventually announced that she had given birth in May 2021. GVRA leadership later received an email from an individual claiming to be the father of the child and stating that Folsom had been mandated several weeks of rest following the delivery. As a result, GVRA approved approximately seven weeks of paid FMLA leave that it otherwise would not have approved,” according to the OIG’s statement.
“OIG’s investigation revealed that in March 2021, a co-worker observed the lower portion of Folsom’s stomach ‘come away’ from her body and believed Folsom wore a fake pregnant stomach. In addition, Folsom allegedly sent pictures of her new baby to various GVRA employees, however, the pictures appeared to be inconsistent and depicted children with varying skin tones.”
Folsom reported the birth of a child in July 2020, and said she was again pregnant in August 2021. OIG officials said the State Office of Vital Records did not possess any birth certificate listing Folsom as a mother. A review of medical and insurance records found no indication that Folsom had ever delivered a child. Folsom resigned last October, shortly after OIG investigators interviewed her.
Grand jurors this month indicted Folsom on four felony counts: three counts of false statements and one count of identity fraud, according to the OIG’s statement.
Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr said in a statement that people convicted of identity fraud can serve one to 10 years in prison.
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Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star and The Georgia Star News. Follow Chris on Facebook, Twitter, Parler, and GETTR. Email tips to [email protected].
