From NBC Chicago:
… [L]ast summer Jo and Holly Howard visited the Social Security office in Woodstock. The good news: Jo Howard was issued a check for almost $55,000 [under the Social Security Fairness Act] and The bad news - she never got it. …
It turns out, just five days after the check was issued in June, it was cashed. According to the police report, the ‘female suspect, employed by Amazon inc’ was using an ID with Jo Howard’s information.
“We thought the case would be solved, that she would be prosecuted,” she stated.
According to the police report,there was even video of the suspect cashing the check at the bank. But the officer "could not open the encrypted file." That lead was quickly abandoned, and then Old Dominion Bank stopped responding to the police department, police stated.
“So the police just closed the case,” Holly Howard said. …
“I made seven trips to the Social Security office. Every time you see a different person, you get a different story,” she said.
On the seventh visit, Jo Howard said she was told to file a theft report with the U.S. Treasury Department. Now almost a year from the theft, she said the investigation is just ramping up. …
Does the Secret Service still investigate these cases? The Secret Service isn’t even in the Department of the Treasury. It’s in Homeland Security now. Has she even contracted the right agency? Doesn’t Social Security have an obligation to pay this woman now, regardless of the investigation? Whether the crook gets caught is irrelevant. Where is Social Security’s Office of Inspector General? Old Dominion stopped responding? No kidding. If they accepted a forged endorsement they’re the ones on the hook for this fraud. I remember that much about the U.C.C.
Please, no snarky remarks about the Social Security Fairness Act. If she’s owed the money, she’s owed the money.
5 comments:
SSA OIG….lmao
Should have used direct deposit. My recollection is that Treasury has to determine the check was fraudulently cashed and give SSA credit back before the payment can be reissued. However, it sounds like she may not have notified SSA that the check was not received. All SSA would see is that it was cashed.
What's a "check"? Why not receive direct deposit or Direct Express?
No snarky remarks here! You're absolutely correct that ODB accepted a fraudulent check. Something similar happened with my bank (not ODB) years ago. I told them firmly (in person) "You gave away my money illegally, and that is fraud, abuse or whatever I'm going to sue you for!" after 4 months long of arguing then they went silent and I had to go to a branch, they didn't like there was 7 or so people in line behind me, and I was firm, but not very quiet about it. There was money in my account the next day. It certainly wasn't $55,000, it was only a few hundred, close to $1000 or so, I think. SAME circumstances, just was not a SSA check, it was a refund check. I tried to get the SSA office of inspector general after my local office this last year (different reason) and the page said there wasn't one, and said nothing about an Acting IG. This poor lady. Yes, she should go after the bank. It's easier than trying to get an Acting IG that one can't even find on the webpage. I do know that the Secret Service works with the Postal IG for postal fraud too. Secret Service is occupied at the moment, or just don't care anymore? Things are changing in our country, and not for the good. The poor lady in this situation should file suit against ODB. Especially if there is video evidence and they KNOW who criminal is! Video does not lie.
Two issues here: getting her the money she's owed, and prosecuting the person who stole it. For the former, her Congressional constituent service folks might be helpful. For the latter (if the check was stolen from the mail), reporting it to the Postal Inspection Service might work...they don't mess around.
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