SEATTLE — A Mill Creek couple has admitted to bilking nearly $300,000 from a government program designed to help people living with disabilities.
Anthony and Roxanne George pleaded guilty Monday in U.S. District Court to Social Security fraud. They face up to five years in federal prison. As part of their plea agreement, Anthony George agreed to pay $198,148 in restitution. His wife agreed to pay $91,527.
Federal prosecutors alleged that Anthony George in 1982 was issued a second Social Security number under the name Sonny Fisher. About a decade later, he allegedly used his bogus identity to apply for disability payments.
At numerous interviews over the years Anthony and Roxanne George allegedly said that Sonny Fisher was profoundly disabled and unable to work. Investigators say Anthony George, 37, worked as a used car salesman, lived in a $430,000 home and had more than $10,000 in his bank account.
Roxanne George claimed to be a single mother of three children and failed to report that she lived with her common-law husband, Anthony George. She fraudulently obtained $67,510 in food, health care and financial assistance from the state.
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