Manchester Man Pleads Guilty to Making False Statements to Get Social Security Benefits

            CONCORD - David Johnson, 35, of Manchester, pleaded guilty in federal court to making false statements to obtain Social Security benefits, Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today.

            According to court documents and statements made in court, in December of 2013, Johnson applied for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) through the Social Security Administration (SSA).  Because SSI is need-based, the SSA considers various factors such as marital status when determining eligibility and calculating the benefit amount.  When he applied for SSI benefits, Johnson agreed to report certain changes, including a change in marital status.

            Johnson married his spouse in April of 2014 and was required to notify the SSA of his marriage by May 10, 2014.  However, Johnson did not disclose his marriage to the SSA.  During subsequent SSI redeterminations in 2015 and 2016, Johnson falsely represented to the SSA that he was unmarried.  Due to his concealment of his marriage, Johnson received over $32,000 in SSI benefits that he was not entitled to receive.

            Johnson is scheduled to be sentenced on September 13, 2021.

            “Supplemental Security Income benefits provide important financial support for needy individuals,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley.  “Unfortunately, there are those who lie or cheat to obtain benefits that they are not entitled to receive.  In order to protect the integrity of this important federal program, we work with the Inspector General of the Social Security Administration to investigate and prosecute those who commit fraud to obtain SSI benefits.”

             This matter was investigated by the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General.  The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander S. Chen and Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew T. Hunter.

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