Jamie Aguilar, a Mexican national, was sentenced in Del Rio, Tex., to a 45-month prison term after pleading guilty to one count of Theft of Public Money. (No surprise here that another fraudster is not who they claim to be.)
In May 2006, the 60-year-old, who claimed to be a U.S. citizen, applied for Social Security Insurance (SSI) benefits. Aguilar attempted to carry out a similar fraud scheme when he illegally applied and received Medicaid benefits beginning in March 2012. (Eventually when you participate in enough illegal activity, you are going to end up in prison.)
In total, Aguilar received $247,477.68 in undeserved government assistance. He was ordered to pay that amount in restitution. Aguilar, who was arrested on April 18, 2019, has remained in federal custody since that date. (And it looks like he will not be going anywhere any time soon.)
“He not only defrauded SSA, but in doing so, he also improperly received other federal benefits,” said Inspector General for the Social Security Administration Gail S. Ennis. “His sentence shows our commitment to protect Social Security benefits and to hold accountable those who misuse its programs.” (We should all be grateful when investigations and legal decisions lead to justice for fraudsters and their illegal activities.)
Today’s Fraud of the Day comes from a Department of Justice press release, “Mexican National Sentences for Theft of Social Security Benefits,” dated March 16, 2022.
DEL RIO – A Mexican national was sentenced last week to 45 months in prison for stealing Social Security benefits.
According to court documents, in May 2006 Jaime Aguilar, 60, applied for Social Security Insurance (SSI) benefits, claiming to be a U.S. citizen. Aguilar also applied and received Medicaid benefits beginning in March 2012, again claiming he was a U.S. citizen. It was later determined that Aguilar was a Mexican citizen and had fraudulently received $247,477.68 in government assistance payments.
