An East Meadow man is among a growing number of people who have fallen victim to an unemployment scam.

Alvin Borrero applied for assistance from the state Labor Department in December but has not seen a dime. The Labor Department says someone else applied for unemployment using his Social Security number and now the claim is tied up in bureaucratic red tape.

"They took 20 years of my taxes, and someone else is using it and I don't see any movement," says Borrero.

Borrero isn't the only victim. During the pandemic, fraudulent unemployment claims skyrocketed. More than 1 million people have been caught by investigators.

The state labor commissioner tells News 12, "Our special investigations is aggressively deploying advanced resources to fight this fraud."

Last month, federal investigators busted eight Brooklyn men for allegedly stealing $2 million in unemployment aid, getting cash from ATMs and then posting pictures online.

The Department of Labor wouldn't comment directly on Borrero's case citing privacy laws but did ask for his contact information.

That led to a top investigator contacting Borrero. The investigator pledged to clear his account and help get him the money he's owed.

"I have been praying every day, and I hope this is a good sign that there's a light at the end of the tunnel," says Borrero.

State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli tells News 12 his office has launched a full audit of the controls and security at the Labor Department. He says an initial audit in February found numerous red flags.