Allegedly Posted Photos of Zip-Lining Vacation While Collecting Medical Disability Payments
A grand jury has returned an indictment against a former New Jersey postal employee, charging him with theft by deception and insurance fraud. The indictment came after the former postal worker posted online photos showing him ziplining and rappelling while on vacation in 2015.
According to prosecutors, the defendant first sought workers’ compensation in 2008 for what he alleged was a fall on the job. He obtained a medical opinion then that his injuries made him unfit to perform the requirements of his job as a letter carrier. He had been receiving workers’ compensation payments ever since, even though medical assessments in 2009, 2010 and 2012 all said he was able to return to work. He also turned down offers from the Postal Service to take less physically demanding jobs, regularly providing his employer with reports from a personal physician that attested to his inability to work.
In addition to the Facebook photos showing him ziplining, prosecutors also said they had documentary evidence of the man engaged in other strenuous activities, including climbing, using a chain saw and a hand saw, throwing large logs and participating in other types of yard work. The man allegedly signed a waiver just prior to going ziplining. The New Jersey Attorney General’s office says the crimes with which the man is charged can carry up to 15 years in prison, as well as more than $150,000 in fines.
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