Former Letter Carrier Pleads Guilty to Worker’s Compensation Fraud

BOSTON – A former U.S. Postal Service employee pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to fraudulently obtaining worker’s compensation for medical travel.

Joseph Scimone, 72, of Stoneham, pleaded guilty to one count of fraud in obtaining federal employee compensation and was sentenced by U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Marianne Bowler to three months of probation and ordered to pay a fine of $2,500 and restitution of $24,906.

The Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA) provides income replacement to civilian employees of the U.S. Government who sustain an injury while performing their official duty. From 2011 to 2017, Scimone, a former letter carrier who was eligible for compensation, submitted dozens of travel vouchers to FECA for travel to fitness centers in Lexington, Lynnfield and Bedford for dates when he did not actually use those gyms or used a different gym of closer proximity. Scimone’s fraudulent submissions totaled approximately $24,906.

Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb and Eileen Neff, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Postal Service, Office of the Inspector General, Northeast Area Office, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eugenia M. Carris of Weinreb’s Public Corruption and Special Prosecutions Unit prosecuted the case.