A Wilmington woman was sentenced to five months in federal prison for defrauding the U.S. Social Security Administration of more than $200,000 over the past 15 years.
According to court documents, Susan DiFelice, 63, spent over a decade collecting fraudulent Social Security benefits that were intended for a deceased beneficiary.
In 2005, a family friend of DiFelice’s died. Because DiFelice was a joint user on her deceased friend’s bank account, she knew that Social Security continued to deposit more than $1,000 into his account each month.
As the informant on the death certificate, DiFelice also knew that she was required to notify relevant authorities, including the SSA, of the death. Instead, however, DiFelice withdrew the SSA funds and used them for her own personal expenses, court documents indicated.
The SSA Office of the Inspector General investigated this case under the supervision of Special Agent in Charge Michael McGill, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher R. Howland prosecuted.
