New Hope Couple Tried to Pass Off Woman as Deceased Relative

In a scam that's right out of the Showtime show Shameless, a couple tried to pass off another person as their dead relative in order to collect Social Security benefits.

Two New Hope residents were sentenced yesterday for continuing to collect the Social Security benefits of a deceased relative. Roger White, 58, got eight months; wife Audria White-Nunnally, 61, got nine months. They had pleaded guilty in October.

White’s relative died in December 1998, but the pair continued to collect that person’s Social Security benefits until July 2011 according to the federal indictment against the pair. The government says White and White-Nunnally stole $68,462 in government funds during the scheme.

Part of their scam, according to federal authorities, included planting an elderly relative in the attic of their New Hope home in order to pass her off to Social Security Administration employees as White’s deceased relative. Yes, this was a plot point on Shameless. Pocketing a deceased relative’s Social Security benefits is a scam that takes place all over.

They pleaded guilty in October of 2015 to one count of conspiracy, three counts of wire fraud, and one count of theft of government funds. Both White and White-Nunnally were ordered to pay $68,462 in restitution. They’ll each have three year supervised release after getting out of prison.

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