Columbus, OH – Patrice Myers of Columbus (Franklin County) was ordered by a judge to repay BWC more than $7,500 after she pleaded guilty to fraud for working while receiving workers’ compensation benefits.
BWC’s Special Investigations Department (SID) began investigating after receiving an allegation that Myers was working at a pharmacy while receiving benefits for a workplace injury. The investigation found that Myers knowingly worked at the pharmacy while receiving temporary total disability benefits. Claimants are not permitted to work while receiving this type of benefit. SID obtained employment records that confirmed Myers was paid every two weeks and worked approximately 30 to 40 hours per week during the same time period she received the benefits.
Myers pleaded guilty Sept. 9 in a Franklin County courtroom to one first-degree misdemeanor count of workers’ compensation fraud. She was ordered to pay $7,566.24 in restitution to the BWC, and sentenced to 180 days in jail, suspended for five years of community control. Myers has paid approximately $1,200 to the Franklin County Clerk’s Office as part of her restitution.
Source: Ohio BWC SID