Illinois Woman Pleads Guilty to Social Security Fraud

Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today that on October 3, 2012, Jacqueline L. Burrell, 45, of Cahokia, Illinois, pled guilty in federal district court to Concealment of a Material Fact from the Social Security Administration (SSA) as charged in a one-count indictment returned on June 5, 2012. This charge carries a statutory maximum possible punishment of up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, a period of supervised release of up to three years, and the payment of a $100 special assessment. Sentencing is scheduled for January 25, 2013, at 10:00 a.m.  During her plea, Ms. Burrell admitted that from on or about January 1, 2003, and continuing until on or about February 29, 2008, she continued to receive Supplemental Security Income Benefits payments for her children. Burrell had been acting as the representative payee for her minor  children, but she failed to disclose, and concealed, the fact that the children no longer resided with her in order to continue to receive payment on their behalf. In reality, the minor children resided with their father in California. The United States indicates that the amount of loss to SSA is $52,836.https://oig-files.ssa.gov/audits/full/Burrell%2C%20Jacqueline%20-%20pleads%20guilty%20to%20social%20security%20fraud.pdf