A man who conspired to fraudulently keep receiving social security benefits while in prison pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

Robert Wilberding, age 68, from Waterloo, Iowa, was convicted of one count of conspiring to defraud the United States.

At the plea hearing, Wilberding admitted that, between about December 2006 and April 2010, he and another conspired to defraud the United States by ensuring that Wilberding continued to receive Social Security benefits while Wilberding was in prison. Wiberding admitted he knew he was supposed to stop receiving benefits while incarcerated and neither he nor his coconspirator took steps to notify the Social Security Administration that he was imprisoned.

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Wilberding remains free on bond pending sentencing. Wilberding faces a possible maximum sentence of 5 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a $100 special assessment, and 3 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Peter Deegan and was investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 11-2032 LRR.

 

 

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