The governor of Kentucky Andy Beshear apologized on Tuesday (April 28, 2020) for saying someone named Tupac Shakur, who had applied for unemployment in the state, was an example of fraud — when it was actually the person's real name. Oof.
A record number of people have filed for unemployment in the state over the past two months.
Pranksters have slowed the process, Beshear said at his daily briefing Monday.
The rapper Tupac Shakur was killed in 1996, so it was considered a prank when the same name popped up in the state’s unemployment applications, according to the governor.
It even prompted a lecture from Beshear, who said fraudulent unemployment claims were delaying the distribution to those who really need the money.
“It’s going to take a little bit of time in these because a couple of bad apples can make this challenge that much more difficult. For instance, we had somebody apply for unemployment for Tupac Shakur here in Kentucky and that person probably thought they were being funny,” the governor said Monday.
However, it wasn’t a laughing matter for 46-year-old Tupac Malik Shakur.
The Lexington man was working at Alfalfa before the restaurant closed to stop the spread of COVID 19.
Shakur told the Lexington Herald-Leader, “I’ve been struggling for like the last month trying to figure out how to pay the bills.”
Needless to say, he wasn’t pleased when Kentucky’s governor accused him of trying to scam the system.
Beshear said: “We have to to go through so many other claims that one person thought they were being funny using someone else’s identity is going to make lots of thousands other people wait. It’s not OK.”
Shakur told the Leader: “I’m hurt, I’m really embarrassed and I’m shocked. He needs to apologize. That’s just my name.”
His request was granted Tuesday.
“I own someone an apology tonight,” the governor said. “Last night I spent a little bit of time talking about fraudulent claims holding us up. I mentioned an individual who filed in the name of Tupac Shakur. I didn’t’ know and it’s my fault that we have a Kentuckian who goes by Malik whose name is Tupac Shakur. I talked to him on the today I apologized.”
