For collecting more than $26,000 in disability benefits while he purportedly continued to work, a Wilmington man has been indicted on larceny and workers’ compensation fraud charges. The news was announced by Attorney General Maura Healey last week.
Jerry Keith Bull, 49, was indicted by a Middlesex Grand Jury on charges of larceny over $250 by False Pretenses and Workers’ Compensation Fraud. Bull will be prosecuted in Middlesex Superior Court at a later date.
“The unlawful collection of workers’ compensation benefits undermines the integrity of the insurance industry and takes funds away from those in need,” said Healey in a statement. “The investigation and prosecution of these crimes are important to deter this type of fraud and return funds to the Commonwealth.”
The Attorney General’s Office investigated the matter after the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) sent them a tip in November 2014.
“Fraudulent insurance claims are costly, and are thrust upon the back of honest citizens and businesses,” said Insurance Fraud Bureau Executive Director Daniel Johnston. “The Insurance Fraud Bureau of Massachusetts investigates hundreds of these cases annually, and works with the Attorney General’s office to see that perpetrators are brought to justice.”
The investigation discovered that Bull suffered an injury while working for a restaurant in June 2009. Since then, he began to receive temporary total disability benefits following his workers’ comp claim for medical expenses and recovery of lost wages.
Bull continued to work for a restaurant well into April 2010 while receiving benefits. During this period, he allegedly made false statements about his wages and failed to reveal his return to work in order to continue collecting workers’ comp benefits.
The authorities claim that Bull illegally collected more than $26,000 in disability benefits.
The case is being handled by Sara Shannon of the Attorney General’s Insurance and Unemployment Fraud Division—a task force created specifically to protect consumers and the integrity of the insurance system by investigating and arraigning those who commit fraud. She is assisted by investigator Philip Mantyla of the Attorney General’s Office and other investigators from the IFB.