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Timothy Gritman, a 55-year-old resident of Brodheadsville in Monroe County, pleaded guilty to Social Security and wire fraud in a federal court on Tuesday, Feb. 14, said US Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero in a statement.
According to prosecutors, Gritman's father Ralph was 79 and "in poor health" when he was last seen alive by other family members in 2016. The next summer, authorities say Gritman moved with his father to the state of Wyoming.
Sometime after that, Romero said, Gritman's father died. Medicare records show Ralph's health insurance was last used in September 2017, for an emergency hospital visit in Wyoming, but he was never legally reported deceased, federal authorities said.
The miscommunication allowed Gritman to continue to collect his dad's Social Security checks and New York State pension, officials said.
Investigators said Gritman even obtained a Pennsylvania state identification for his late dad, and that he was photographed holding up his father's ID while "appearing to use make-up to whiten his hair and eyebrows" during this time.
In all, officials say Gritman fraudulently received $204,985 in benefits, and while federal law enforcement says they are confident his father has died, Ralph Gritman's remains have never been located.
"Representing the United States in court means protecting taxpayer funds, including pursuing cases where there is an attempt to obtain money from the SSA fraudulently," Romero wrote.
"Defendant Gritman physically represented himself as his elderly father to steal funds from the SSA. His guilty plea should serve as a warning that defrauding the SSA or any other government agency will never be worth money fraudulently obtained."
Gritman could face a sentence up to 285 with an apparently symbolic supervised release of 36 months, Romero continued. He could also be made to pay a $3,750,000 fine and an additional $1,500 "special assessment," she added.
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