Seaford man sentenced for collecting Social Security benefits of deceased client

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A Seaford man was sentenced to 30 days in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for defrauding the Social Security Administration of nearly $150,000.

According to court documents, Marques Fountain, 42, collected another man’s SSA retirement benefits. The man, for whom Fountain served as a caretaker passed away in 2009.

Social Security continued to deposit the deceased man’s retirement benefits into a bank account controlled by Fountain. For more than a decade, Fountain used the  retirement benefits for his personal expenses. After admitting that he knew stealing the money was wrong, Fountain pleaded guilty in October 2021.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher R. Howland prosecuted the case, which was investigated by SSA’s Office of the Inspector General.