There are lots of pesky things that are bothersome such as ants who invade your kitchen counters and termites who silently eat away at your home’s foundation. Fortunately, there are chemical solutions to both of these problems—any local exterminator can put an end to these pesky critters. The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) had to recently deal with a pest of another kind. A man collecting injured worker’s benefits from the state agency was also secretly working another job at the same time. (That’s a definite no-no.)
After the agency received a tip, the Special Investigations Department determined that the man was also working for a local pest control company while receiving approximately $5,000 in a workers’ compensation benefits due to a reported injury. (I bet that really bugged the BWC. Benefits are supposed to be paid to workers who have been injured on the job, and as a result are not able to work or earn an income.)
The 57-year-old pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of workers’ compensation fraud. He was sentenced to 180 days in jail, but the judge suspended the sentence and gave him one year of community control, or probation. He was also ordered him to pay restitution of $5,000 to his employer. (The article did state that he had already paid back $2,023.)
This man did not simply make a mistake when filling out his workers compensation claim forms. He intended to conceal his pest control job from the BWC and his employer who has to pay into the insurance program. (This criminal got lucky and didn’t have to serve any jail term; it remains to be seen whether his employer will rid the company of this pest.)
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