Louisville Woman Charged With Defrauding The Social Security Administration

Failed to disclose the death of her husband for eleven years

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A Louisville woman was recently charged with several counts involving the fraudulent receipt of Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance (OASDI) benefits by the Social Security Administration (SSA), for an eleven year period, announced United States Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr.

According to the three-count Superseding Indictment, returned April 20, 2016, Janice M. Arnow failed to disclose the death of her husband and continued to receive and spend OASDI payments made by the SSA between October 2003 and October 2014.

Further, during the same period, Arnow is charged with theft of government property. Arnow allegedly embezzled, stole, and purloined money of the Social Security Administration (SSA), a department and agency of the United States, namely, Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance program (OASDI) payments made to her deceased husband, to which she knew she was not entitled, having a value in excess of $1,000.

Also, on or about July 17, 2012, Arnow is charged with making a false Social Security Application. It’s alleged that Arnow willfully and knowingly made a materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statement, by submitting an application for OASDI payments to the SSA. In doing so, Arnow is charged with falsely omitting the identity of her late husband, the receipt of income from her late husband’s OASDI payments,  the date of his death, and falsely indicating that she had no other marriages than to M.H. 

In the event of a conviction, the maximum potential penalties are 20 years in prison, $750,000 fines, and supervised release for a period of three years. Arnow is scheduled for arraignment on the superseding indictment, before Magistrate Judge Dave Whalin, on April 28, 2016, in Louisville.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Judd, and results from an investigation conducted by the Social Security Administration –Office of the Inspector General.     

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The indictment of a person by Federal Grand Jury is an accusation only and that person is presumed innocent until and unless proven.