November 10, 2011
HUDSON MAN SENTENCED FOR STEALING DEAD MOTHER’S SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFITS
DENVER – Wayne Henry Ackermann, age 55, of Hudson, Colorado was sentenced recently by U.S. District Court Judge Marcia S. Krieger to serve 5 years of probation with the first six months in home detention with electronic monitoring for stealing his deceased mother’s Social Security benefits, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Social Security Office of the Inspector General announced today. Judge Krieger also ordered Ackermann to pay $21,988 in restitution to the Social Security Administration.
On April 6, 2011, Ackermann was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver. On April 7, 2011, Ackermann was charged in a superseding indictment. He pled guilty on August 2, 2011, and was sentenced October 17, 2011.
According to the indictments and subsequent plea agreement, the defendant’s mother died on April 13, 2007. She had been receiving Social Security Survivor’s Insurance Benefits (i.e. widows benefits) on the social security record of her deceased husband. The payments were made electronically into the mother’s bank account on a monthly basis. From May 3, 2007 through March 3, 2009, Ackermann used a debit card that was linked to his mother’s bank account, to withdraw $21,988. The debit card expired in March 2009.
Ackermann knew that the benefits he was spending were intended for his mother and were supposed to stop after her death. Further, he knew he was not entitled to those benefits.
"Concealing the death of a loved one in order to steal their Social Security benefits is an appalling criminal act,” said Wilbert Craig, Special Agent in Charge of the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General. “Mr. Ackermann used his deceased mother’s ATM card to steal deposited SSA funds. He took money that many of our country’s eligible retirees and surviving spouses need for their daily living expenses. Though SSA has significantly improved its process for recording and reporting deaths, the SSA-OIG aggressively pursues those few individuals that dare to exploit our programs. We appreciate the team effort of our agents, auditors, and the US Attorney’s Office in bringing Mr. Ackerman to justice.”
This case was investigated by the Social Security Administration, Office of the Inspector General, Office of Investigations.
The defendant was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Michele Kelley.
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