They say America’s entitlement system is unsustainable. With this tale of dishonesty it’s easy to see why.
A man has been accused of continuing to draw his deceased mother’s Social Security payments, a full 15 years after she passed away.
The 67-year-old man from Florida is said to have simply continued cashing his mother’s Social Security checks following her death.
The man’s mother, identified as Rose Greenberg, died in 2004. But her Social Security checks didn’t stop depositing into a joint bank account she shared with her son, Richard Greenberg.
Southern District of Florida court records show Richard Greenberg received $225,475 in improper funds.
An investigation into the check deposits began when the office of Florida’s Inspector General’s death match audit discovered the benefit continued after her death. The last deposit was made in July.
So, Richard Greenberg was eventually rumbled, and duly arrested Nov. 18. He is charged with a staggering 55 counts of theft of government property. Greenberg faces a maximum penalty of 10 years.
The Miami Herald reports that we shouldn’t really be surprised at his conduct, because Greenberg was in reality a “serial criminal”.
He also seems to have enjoyed the good life, spending freely thanks to the Government’s unwitting largesse. Fifty checks and $225,475 in improper payments since his mother’s death, Greenberg is now reported to have only $1,500 left in the bank.
The resident of Sunrise, a town in the Miami metropolitan areas, is still living in a condominium he purchased in 1994 for $64,000. A trial is set for Jan. 14. Stay tuned.
 | Sunrise, Florida |
|---|---|
| Location: | Metropolitan Miami area, central-western Broward County |
| Population: | 84,439 |
| Median Household Income: | $40,998 |
| Quirky Fact: | Sunrise was incorporated in 1961 by Norman Johnson – a developer whose Upside-Down House attracted buyers to what was then a remote area |