Postal Employee Pleads Guilty to Stealing Over $100k in Benefits

A Postal Service employee recently pleaded guilty to theft of over $100,000 in government benefits.

A Postal Service employee recently pleaded guilty to stealing over $100,000 in government benefits.

According to an announcement from the Justice Department, Lisa Ann Schafer, 57, entered a guilty plea in court in St. Paul, Minnesota for theft of $108,490.47 in federal disability benefits that she was not entitled to receive.

According to the her guilty plea and documents filed in court, from September 18, 2015, through May 3, 2019, when Schafer was an employee of the United States Postal Service, she knowingly claimed Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA) benefits by falsely asserting that a work-related injury prevented her from working in a full-time capacity.

Schafer reported to her doctor that her medical condition required her to rest most of the day and that she could tolerate only sedentary work. Her doctor accordingly limited her to no more than two hours of office work a day, enabling her to collect FECA benefits due to her purported work-related injury.

However, during this time period, Schafer was observed participating in 30-40 dog-agility competitions where she is seen running, bending quickly at the waist, and using large arm movements to navigate dogs through a variety of exercises.

Special Agent-in-Charge John D. Masters, Western Area Field Office, USPS Office of the Inspector General said, “The American public trusts that U.S. Postal Service employees will obey the law. When an employee of the Postal Service violates that trust, the Postal Service Office of Inspector General (USPS OIG) investigates those matters. Today’s plea sends a clear message that workers’ compensation fraud is a federal crime, which carries serious consequences. The USPS OIG, along the U.S. Attorney’s Office, remain committed to safeguarding the integrity of the workers’ compensation program and ensuring the accountability and integrity of U.S. Postal Service employees.”

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Ian Smith is one of the co-founders of FedSmith.com. He has over 20 years of combined experience in media and government services, having worked at two government contracting firms and an online news and web development company prior to his current role at FedSmith.