A veteran admitted in court Thursday that he faked needing a wheelchair to claim $662,871.77 in benefits to which he was not entitled.
Forty-nine-year-old Christopher Stultz of Antrim, New Hampshire, pleaded guilty to one count of making false statements, the Associated Press (AP) reported Friday, adding that the man, who is also a kindergarten teacher, kept up the facade for 20 years.
An image shows the veteran in question:
The U.S. Attorney’s Office District of New Hampshire detailed the case in a press release Thursday:
Beginning in January 2003, Stultz falsely represented to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) that he was no longer able to use his feet. This caused the VA to rate him as 100% disabled, increasing his monthly VA benefits. In addition, because the VA believed Stultz was unable to use his feet, he was also awarded funding through the VA’s Automobile Adaptive Equipment program to purchase special cars and vehicle adaptations designed to help mobility-impaired veterans.
However, Stultz did not need a wheelchair or other ambulatory device to move around. He was surveilled on multiple occasions and recorded walking normally.
Social media users commented about the man keeping up the story for so many years, one person calling him “Committed.”
“He needs to pay it back,” another user said, while someone else stated, “Shameful. On both parts. Why would it take 20 years to figure out his scam?”
The attorney’s office said U.S. District Court Judge Joseph N. Laplante scheduled Stultz’s sentencing for May, adding, “The charging statute provides a sentence of no greater than 5 years in prison and 3 years of supervised release.”
A similar instance happened in 2015. A wounded Army veteran in Dripping Springs, Texas, claimed he was paralyzed but was apparently caught on video walking around the home that was given to him by a nonprofit, KENS 5 reported:
When a reporter confronted the man, he ordered him to leave his property.
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