A North Carolina man who pleaded guilty to obtaining almost $1 million in healthcare benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs through fraud will have to give up his mobility scooter as part of his sentence.
Willie Dosher Cain, 73, of Fayetteville was sentenced to five years of probation and ordered to perform 250 hours of community service on Jan. 5 by United States District Judge Thomas D. Schroeder.
According to a Justice Department release, Cain pleaded guilty on June 17, 2020, to one count of embezzlement.
Cain was also ordered to pay $903,668.08 in restitution and a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $150,000, and forfeited $155,041.30 in cash, a modified 2018 Toyota Sienna van, and a mobility scooter. In a related civil forfeiture action, he also forfeited a Carolina Beach condominium.
According to documents filed with the court, Cain, an Army and Fayetteville Police Department veteran, represented to the VA that as a result of shrapnel wounds sustained in Vietnam in 1965, he had suffered the loss of use of both legs, as well as loss of bowel and bladder control, that he was unable to perform daily activities such as dressing and bathing without assistance, and that he was dependent on a wheelchair or motorized scooter for mobility.
However, filed documents state, that Cain maintained an active lifestyle throughout this time, including working as a firearms and concealed carry instructor, enjoying beach activities, playing basketball, dancing, and attending social events.
He also bought a condominium at Carolina Beach on the third floor of a building that had no elevator, according to the release.
“The investigation revealed that as a result of his false claims, Cain received hundreds of thousands of dollars of VA benefits to which he was not entitled, in the form of direct payments for aid and attendance, modifications to his home, and the purchase and adaptation of vehicles,” the release states.
Schroeder cited the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the defendant’s age and prior military service as factors in determining the sentence.
Reach Julia LeDoux at Julia@connectingvets.com
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