The man will spend 30 months in prison, plus pay a fine.
Former Grant County Man Sentenced for Decades-Long Vet Benefit Fraud
The fraud began in 1997, when the suspect, identified as Raymond Kenneth Musgrove, began to defraud the Veterans Administration.
He took the ID of a real veteran, and began to get illegal benefits. According to the US Attorney’s Office:
“Beginning as early as 1997, he assumed the identity of a real individual, identified in court documents as J.M.C., a United States Marine Corps veteran who served in Vietnam. While posing as J.M.C., Musgrove obtained Veterans Affairs compensation benefits, received healthcare services through the Department of Veterans Affairs, opened financial accounts using the victim’s identity, and submitted false statements and documentation to maintain and reinstate benefits.”
Even after the real J.M.C. passed away in 2018, several times the benefits were correctly terminated, but each time Musgrove was able to convince authorities the death was incorrectly reported, and benefits reinstated.
His Fraud Was Well Over Three Quarters of a Million Dollars
By the time the fraud was fully uncovered, Musgrove had improperly received over $860,000 in vet benefits spanning nearly 27 years.
According to the US Attorney’s Office:
“Musgrove pled guilty to two counts of false representation of a Social Security number, five counts of wire fraud, and one count of theft of government funds. He was also found guilty at bench trial of three counts of aggravated identity theft stemming from a decades-long scheme in which he impersonated a real Vietnam veteran to unlawfully obtain government benefits and services.”
He had originally faced a potential sentence of 20 years, but was given 30 months, and what the court called a $1,100 special assessment.
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