Man Named Tupac Shakur Accused of Unemployment Ripoff; Here Is What Happened

Tupac Shakur was trending on Twitter today and the reason why might shock you.

According to a report from Lexington, Ky.'s Herald-Leader on Tuesday, a man who shares the same name as the beloved late rapper was accused of fraud after attempting to file for unemployment amid the coronavirus pandemic. During a news conference Monday evening, the state's governor, Andy Beshear, called out those who were seeking unemployment and using false names in order to do so.

"We had somebody apply for unemployment for Tupac Shakur here in Kentucky,” Beshear said, presumably referring to the hip-hop legend who was tragically killed in 1996. “And that person may have thought they were being funny, they probably did. Except for the fact that because of them, we had to go through so many other claims.”

Unbeknownst to Gov. Beshear, there is a Kentucky resident named Tupac Malik Shakur, who is attempting to receive unemployment because his workplace has closed to help stop the spread of the coronavirus. Shakur, 46, lives in Lexington, Ky. and worked as a cook at Alfalfa restaurant and Lynagh's Irish Pub.

Shakur said he filed for unemployment insurance and received a monetary determination letter in the beginning of March. However, it's been a month and the Kentucky resident has yet to receive his unemployment.

Shakur said he applied for unemployment insurance on March 13, receiving his letter of monetary determination four days later, but that he has been waiting for the money ever since. “I’ve been struggling for like the last month to figure out how to pay the bills,” he told the newspaper.

The 46-year-old man said he has been reaching out to the unemployment insurance office in Frankfort, Ky., but could not figure out why it was taking so long to receive his funds. Shakur also noted that he wouldn't have guessed that those responsible for releasing his money thought his filing was just a prank.

"I’m hurt, I’m really embarrassed and I’m shocked. He needs to apologize. That’s just my name," he said, referring to Gov. Beshear.

Beshear’s office initially said they could not verify the identity of the person who filed a claim under the name Tupac Shakur. The Herald-Leader later gave the governor’s office Shakur’s number and Gov. Beshear has since apologized. “I understand, he’s dealing with a lot,” Tupac Shakur said. “Mistakes happen.”

Jeb Messer, whose wife owns Lynagh’s, the restaurant where Shakur worked, said he was frustrated on Shakur’s behalf, saying the state should have worked harder to verify his identity before assuming it was a false name.

“Something this minor shouldn’t hold up a system that’s ensuring the well-being of this many people right now,” Messer said. Nearly a quarter of the state’s workforce has filed for unemployment.

Apparently, Shakur didn't always share his first and last name with the late rapper, he goes by Malik. After his father, who practised Islam, died in the early 1990s, he took up the faith. He later legally changed his name to Shakur in 1998 because it means "thankful to God" in Arabic, the outlet reports.

The late rapper, Tupac Shakur died in 1996 as a result of succumbing to his injuries after being shot during a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas.

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