FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 21, 2025 Media Inquiries: oig.press@ssa.gov OIG Report: FY 2024 Assessment of the Social Security Administration’s Charge Card Programs A report issued February 28, 2025, found the risk of illegal, improper, and erroneous purchases made through the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) charge card programs is low. The assessment by SSA’s Office of…

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 21, 2025 Media Inquiries: oig.press@ssa.gov The Social Security Administration’s (SSA) documented causes for issuing overpayments in its two payment programs.  SSA OIG issued an informational report on Feb 20, 2025, that indicates that the largest cause to overpayments I beneficiaries untimely reporting of information that affected their benefits. The report reviewed…

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 20, 2025 Media Inquiries: oig.press@ssa.gov The Social Security Administration (SSA) Office of the Inspector General auditors determined SSA Processing Center 8 accurately processed 33.7 percent of the sample cases reviewed. For the remaining 66.3 percent, Processing Center 8 staff did not always comply with SSA policies and the screening guide. Further,…

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 19, 2025 Media Inquiries: oig.ssa.gov Receiving accurate reports of death is a major and ongoing concern for the Social Security Administration (SSA). A recent report by the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) illustrates the need for SSA to continue to improve its death reporting processing systems. According to the report…

U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Pennsylvania PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Cesar David Martinez-Gonzalez, 40, a native of Venezuela who had been residing in Chester, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Gerald A. McHugh to 36 months’ imprisonment and $20,560 in restitution, in connection with a…

U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Georgia NEWNAN – Timmy S. Stephens has been sentenced for stealing money intended as disability benefits from the Social Security Administration.  For approximately 20 years, Stephens claimed that he was disabled in order to receive benefits all while he worked at a local funeral home.  “Stephens perpetrated a two-decades…

U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Louisiana NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – Acting United States Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced that JOSE DAVID SANCHEZ (“SANCHEZ”), age 28, a native of Honduras, was sentenced on March 13, 2025 for illegally using a social security number to qualify for employment, in violation of Title 42, United States Code, Section 408(a)(7)(B). United States…

U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Massachusetts BOSTON – A Spencer woman was charged today in federal court in Worcester with scheming to fraudulently obtain Social Security benefits. Gina Llerena-Donohue, 62, was charged with one count of bank fraud. Llerena-Donohue will make an appearance in federal court in Worcester at a later date. The charging document…

U.S. Attorney’s Office, Middle District of Florida Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr. has sentenced Richard Sauls (64, Daytona Beach) to nine months in federal prison for theft of government property and making false statements to a federal agency. As part of his sentence, Sauls must also pay restitution to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.…