Maryland Woman Pleads Guilty To Trying To Get Benefits

GREENBELT, Md. (AP) — A Maryland woman who formerly served in the U.S. Navy has pleaded guilty to conspiring to submit false claims to the Veterans Administration and the Social Security Administration to obtain more than $1 million in disability benefits, a federal prosecutor said.

Angela Marie Farr, 36, of Leonardtown pleaded guilty on Friday to conspiracy to commit theft of government property and two counts of theft of government property, said U.S. Attorney Erek Barron in a news release.

According to her guilty plea, Farr organized a conspiracy in which she submitted false and fraudulent documents to the Department of Veterans Affairs in support of her claims for disability compensation, as well as for her then-husband and her father. Despite saying in the claims that both men were homebound, they were actually living active lives, the news release said.

Two years after she was administratively discharged from the Navy, Farr filed a claim for disability compensation for post-traumatic stress disorder after being sexually assaulted while on duty three years earlier. She also claimed that she was seriously injured in a traffic accident when she was struck by a drunk driver while driving on duty in 2006.

Farr also received benefits from the Social Security Administration in 2016 based on the same disabilities cited in her VA claims despite working for the Department of Defense.

Farr faces up to five years in federal prison for the conspiracy and as much as 10 years for each count of theft of government property. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 4.

In:
• Social Security Administration