Georgia woman wore fake bump to get paid maternity leave, police say

Baby ‘pictures appeared to be inconsistent and depicted children with varying skin tones’

A state employee in Georgia has been indicted for allegedly wearing a fake baby bump in order to get paid maternity leave, state officials have said.

Robin Folsom, 43, who was the communications director for the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency (GVRA), has reportedly faked more than one pregnancy and is facing claims that she has worn a “fake pregnant stomach”.

She also stands accused of sending an email and making it appear as if it came from the child’s father, mandating that Ms Folsom was required to rest.

The Georgia Office of the Inspector General (OIG) made the allegations in a statement on Monday 14 February.

Georgia’s Republican Attorney General Chris Carr said on 10 February Ms Folsom had been indicted by a grand jury in Fulton County on one count of identity fraud and three counts of false statements.

“Fraud by state employees will not be tolerated,” Mr Carr said. “By working with Georgia’s independent Inspector General, we were able to discover, investigate and put an end to this alleged deception. We will always stand up to protect taxpayer dollars, and we look forward to presenting our case in court.”

Ms Folsom told the HR department that she was pregnant in October 2020 and in May last year, she said she had given birth.

“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,” the inspector general said.

When asked by investigators, Ms Folsom said the father, named as Bran Otmembebwe in the indictment, was a real person.

Investigators found that a co-worker had seen Ms Folsom’s stomach “come away” from her body, leading them to think it was fake.

Ms 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,” the inspector general added.

She also said she gave birth in July 2020 and announced another pregnancy in August 2021.

“OIG learned that the State Office of Vital Records did not possess any birth certificate listing Folsom as a mother, and a review of medical and insurance records found no indication that Folsom had ever delivered a child. Folsom resigned in October 2021 shortly after an interview with OIG investigators,” the office said.

“All state employees, and especially those that communicate with the media and general public on behalf on their agency, should be held to the highest standards of integrity and honesty,” State Inspector General Scott McAfee said in a statement. “OIG will continue to hold state employees accountable if they choose to deceive their superiors and receive undeserved compensation.”

It remained unclear on Thursday if Ms Folsom had retained an attorney to speak on her behalf.