Palmetto woman sentenced for cashing dead woman's checks
Halle Stockton
Published: Friday, April 3, 2009 at 1:56 p.m.
Last Modified: Friday, April 3, 2009 at 1:56 p.m.
MANATEE COUNTY – A Palmetto woman was sentenced to five years in federal prison Thursday in the embezzlement of nearly $63,000 from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Lynn Weber, 55, pleaded guilty in December to stealing government funds by cashing $1,324 monthly checks made out to her boyfriend’s mother who died in 2003.
That woman was receiving the checks through a program designed to aid veterans’ widows who had not remarried.
The VA realized in February 2008 that the woman had died but the checks were still being sent to a Parrish residence and the funds were being used.
The checks were retrieved, and investigators found the woman’s name forged with “Weber” written on the back, according to court documents. A clerk also identified Weber as the person who cashed the checks.
Weber will serve five months on house arrest after the prison sentence and was also ordered to pay $62,960 in restitution.
Palmetto woman sentenced for cashing dead woman's checks
Friday, April 3, 2009
Palmetto woman sentenced for cashing dead woman's checks
