Kansas Woman Gets 2 Years’ Probation in $316,570 Social Security Fraud
Updated
Updated · Hays Post · Oct 11
Kansas Woman Gets 2 Years’ Probation in $316,570 Social Security Fraud
1 articles · Updated · Hays Post · Oct 11
Summary
Carolyn Phillips, 79, was sentenced in Topeka to two years of probation and ordered to repay $316,570 after pleading guilty to unauthorized acquisition of Social Security benefits.
From 2015 to 2024, Phillips collected her husband’s retirement payments after asking SSA to name her his payee while concealing that he was imprisoned from August 2014 to August 2024.
Her application falsely said her husband had a mental impairment and lived with her under her care, even though the form explicitly required disclosure of any jail or prison confinement.
Records also showed $2,437 was deposited into her husband’s prison account over the decade, underscoring prosecutors’ claim that she kept the scheme going for years.