AGXStarseed
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(Not written by me)
A former Salem man was sentenced to 18 months in prison Monday for defrauding the Oregon Department of Human Services and using thousands of dollars intended for his autistic daughter to pay for his own international travel and clothes.
Jordan Waterman, 43, is accused of scamming $16,241 from DHS and using more than $6,000 from his daughter's bank account to pay for hotels, flight services to Peru and clothing for himself.
According to court records, Waterman signed up to be his 19-year-old daughter's personal support worker through DHS in 2016.
The personal support worker program was created as an alternative to residential facilities by allowing those with developmental disabilities to continue to live in the community. Workers are supposed keep those with developmental disabilities safe, cared for and engaged with the community.
During the application process, Waterman said his daughter, who was diagnosed with autism at age 3 and considered to be fairly high functioning, struggled with social situations and anxiety. He said he could help her manage her anxiety and protect her from financial exploitation.
After Waterman lost his job and separated from his wife, he began submitting vouchers for working on his daughter's personal care for 136 hours a month, for which he was paid $14 an hour.
After a few months, he began taking his daughter to Washington to stay with friends. During a visit to Oregon, he told his son and ex-wife he'd met a woman online and would be flying to Peru to meet her.
He left his daughter in the care of his Washington friends in August 2016 and booked a one-way ticket to Peru. According to court records, Waterman continued to submit time sheets claiming to be caring for his daughter, despite being thousands of miles away.
He remained in Peru and tried to convince his son to join in on the scam, offering him $200 in exchange for helping facilitate the fraud. His son refused.
Waterman re-enrolled his daughter in the program and was paid more than $2,000 a month for caring for her. He returned to Washington after her Medicaid coverage lapsed and would occasionally visit Salem to sort out the Medicaid paperwork and stay with a former co-worker.
The co-worker said she was troubled after spotting Waterman's daughter preparing his meal and rubbing his feet because she knew he was being paid to care for her, not the other way around.
A relative reported the fraud to DHS in February 2017. By the time investigators confirmed the fraud, Waterman was back in Peru.
"Because the only thing that seemed to bring the defendant back to Oregon was the threat of losing his ability to steal money, the investigator had the case manager contact the defendant to tell him there was a problem and she needed a face to face meeting with him to clear it up," said special prosecutor Jodie Bureta in a sentencing memorandum.
Waterman admitted to being in Peru for 26 weeks and blamed his actions on his divorce.
"This was born from desperation, a marriage that was completely destroyed after 20 years, my daughter's need to have a mother back in her life, a wife back in mine and a necessary income to achieve a future," he told investigators.
After his arrest, investigators learned Waterman had been spending his daughter's Social Security and disability benefits on himself. According to court records, he would take almost all the money from her account each month while he was in Peru and used it to buy food, hotels, flight services and clothing.
After his arrest, his new wife in Peru continued to withdraw the stolen money from his account.
Waterman was charged with seven counts of making a false claim for health care payment, nine counts of first-degree theft, three counts of second-degree theft and two counts of first-degree criminal mistreatment.
He pleaded guilty to one count of making a false claim for health care payment and six counts of first-degree theft. He pleaded no contest to the allegation that he had violated his legal duty to provide care for his daughter by taking her money.
During Waterman's sentencing Monday, Bureta recommended a prison sentence of 28 months.
She said Waterman continued to try to scam the system by applying for unemployment after his arrest. He listed his job as a personal care worker and his daughter as his employer.
"It is telling that even after the scam was discovered, the defendant has refused to do an honest day's work and instead continues to leech off programs intended to help people who cannot help themselves," Bureta said.
She said a longer sentence would deter him from future fraudulent behavior and deter others from attempted to defraud the welfare system.
Unfortunately, cases like Waterman's are all too common, said Bureta, who prosecutes elder abuse and the abuse of people with disabilities statewide.
Waterman's crimes were especially egregious, she added. Not only did he steal from taxpayers, he stole from his own disabled daughter.
For questions, comments and news tips, email reporter Whitney Woodworth at [email protected], call 503-399-6884 or follow on Twitter @wmwoodworth
Source: https://www.statesmanjournal.com/st...e-fraud-stealing-autistic-daughter/611264002/
A former Salem man was sentenced to 18 months in prison Monday for defrauding the Oregon Department of Human Services and using thousands of dollars intended for his autistic daughter to pay for his own international travel and clothes.
Jordan Waterman, 43, is accused of scamming $16,241 from DHS and using more than $6,000 from his daughter's bank account to pay for hotels, flight services to Peru and clothing for himself.
According to court records, Waterman signed up to be his 19-year-old daughter's personal support worker through DHS in 2016.
The personal support worker program was created as an alternative to residential facilities by allowing those with developmental disabilities to continue to live in the community. Workers are supposed keep those with developmental disabilities safe, cared for and engaged with the community.
During the application process, Waterman said his daughter, who was diagnosed with autism at age 3 and considered to be fairly high functioning, struggled with social situations and anxiety. He said he could help her manage her anxiety and protect her from financial exploitation.
After Waterman lost his job and separated from his wife, he began submitting vouchers for working on his daughter's personal care for 136 hours a month, for which he was paid $14 an hour.
After a few months, he began taking his daughter to Washington to stay with friends. During a visit to Oregon, he told his son and ex-wife he'd met a woman online and would be flying to Peru to meet her.
He left his daughter in the care of his Washington friends in August 2016 and booked a one-way ticket to Peru. According to court records, Waterman continued to submit time sheets claiming to be caring for his daughter, despite being thousands of miles away.
He remained in Peru and tried to convince his son to join in on the scam, offering him $200 in exchange for helping facilitate the fraud. His son refused.
Waterman re-enrolled his daughter in the program and was paid more than $2,000 a month for caring for her. He returned to Washington after her Medicaid coverage lapsed and would occasionally visit Salem to sort out the Medicaid paperwork and stay with a former co-worker.
The co-worker said she was troubled after spotting Waterman's daughter preparing his meal and rubbing his feet because she knew he was being paid to care for her, not the other way around.
A relative reported the fraud to DHS in February 2017. By the time investigators confirmed the fraud, Waterman was back in Peru.
"Because the only thing that seemed to bring the defendant back to Oregon was the threat of losing his ability to steal money, the investigator had the case manager contact the defendant to tell him there was a problem and she needed a face to face meeting with him to clear it up," said special prosecutor Jodie Bureta in a sentencing memorandum.
Waterman admitted to being in Peru for 26 weeks and blamed his actions on his divorce.
"This was born from desperation, a marriage that was completely destroyed after 20 years, my daughter's need to have a mother back in her life, a wife back in mine and a necessary income to achieve a future," he told investigators.
After his arrest, investigators learned Waterman had been spending his daughter's Social Security and disability benefits on himself. According to court records, he would take almost all the money from her account each month while he was in Peru and used it to buy food, hotels, flight services and clothing.
After his arrest, his new wife in Peru continued to withdraw the stolen money from his account.
Waterman was charged with seven counts of making a false claim for health care payment, nine counts of first-degree theft, three counts of second-degree theft and two counts of first-degree criminal mistreatment.
He pleaded guilty to one count of making a false claim for health care payment and six counts of first-degree theft. He pleaded no contest to the allegation that he had violated his legal duty to provide care for his daughter by taking her money.
During Waterman's sentencing Monday, Bureta recommended a prison sentence of 28 months.
She said Waterman continued to try to scam the system by applying for unemployment after his arrest. He listed his job as a personal care worker and his daughter as his employer.
"It is telling that even after the scam was discovered, the defendant has refused to do an honest day's work and instead continues to leech off programs intended to help people who cannot help themselves," Bureta said.
She said a longer sentence would deter him from future fraudulent behavior and deter others from attempted to defraud the welfare system.
Unfortunately, cases like Waterman's are all too common, said Bureta, who prosecutes elder abuse and the abuse of people with disabilities statewide.
Waterman's crimes were especially egregious, she added. Not only did he steal from taxpayers, he stole from his own disabled daughter.
For questions, comments and news tips, email reporter Whitney Woodworth at [email protected], call 503-399-6884 or follow on Twitter @wmwoodworth
Source: https://www.statesmanjournal.com/st...e-fraud-stealing-autistic-daughter/611264002/
