Washington (AFP) – The US Justice Department appointed a chief prosecutor on Thursday to crack down on Covid-19 pandemic fraud, which is estimated to have cost the government more than $8 billion. President Joe Biden welcomed the appointment of a chief pandemic prosecutor and pledged to “escalate our efforts to crack down on bad actors.” The Justice Department, in a statement announcing the new position, said that it has already initiated criminal and civil enforcement actions involving more than $8 billion in alleged pandemic relief fraud. Criminal charges have been lodged against more than 1…