ā·ļøš° MATAWAN MAN SENTENCED AFTER DEFRAUDING SOCIAL SECURITY OF MORE THAN $585,000 āļøšØ
A Matawan man was sentenced to one year in prison for stealing over $585,000 in Social Security disability benefits. Steven D. Stankovits claimed he could not work, but investigators found he was skiing and working as a physically active funeral director.
MATAWAN, NJ ā A 57-year-old Matawan man is serving a federal prison sentence after a jury found him guilty of fraudulently collecting more than $585,000 in Social Security disability benefits over nearly 15 years.
According to federal prosecutors, Steven D. Stankovits was sentenced in Trenton federal court to one year and one day in prison after being convicted of four counts of wire fraud and one count of making false statements to the Social Security Administration.
Prosecutors said Stankovits claimed he was unable to work because of physical limitations. Among the statements authorities said he made were that he could not comfortably sit for more than 15 minutes, had difficulty bending over to put on clothing and struggled to lift something as light as a carton of milk.
He also reportedly told the Social Security Administration that he had been forced to give up skiing.
š¼ PROSECUTORS SAY HIS ACTIVITIES TOLD A DIFFERENT STORY
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Stankovits was working as a licensed funeral director at two funeral homes while receiving disability benefits.
Investigators said his work included physically demanding tasks such as gardening, shoveling snow, carrying 160-pound caskets down stairs and climbing a ladder onto a roof to install a sign.
ā·ļø Prosecutors also presented evidence that Stankovits traveled on long flights to ski destinations including Cortina, Italy, Lake Tahoe and Park City, Utah. He also purchased a season pass at Killington, Vermont, during the period he was receiving benefits.
Stankovits was initially found eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits in 2010, with benefits paid retroactively to 2007.
āļø COURT ORDERS
In addition to his prison sentence, Stankovits was ordered to:
šµ Pay a $50,000 fine š° Pay $585,629 in restitution š¼ Forfeit $480,968 in proceeds prosecutors identified as being obtained through the fraud
The case was prosecuted in federal court in Trenton.
š Matawan, New Jersey