A 70-year-old Marion County man who lied about having vision problems for nearly 30 years and scammed the Department of Veterans Affairs out of over $1,000,000 is facing up to a decade behind bars.
On Monday, U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg of the Middle District of Florida announced that Anthony resident Paul Lesslie Thompson has pleaded guilty to receiving stolen government property.
According to court records, on January 26, 1983, Thompson applied for United States Veterans Affairs (VA) Disability Compensation based on a “loss of vision.”
During vision examinations that were conducted by the VA between May 1993 and December 2022, Thompson exaggerated his visual impairment. Due to his “false representations” to the VA, he eventually received 100% disability compensation.
Despite Thompson’s claims to the VA, he continued to maintain a Florida driver’s license, and he also passed multiple vision exams with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
Over a 28-year period, Thompson fraudulently received a total of $1,169,327.54 in disability compensation from the VA.
Thompson faces a maximum a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a forfeiture of at least $1.16 million, which represents the proceeds in this offense.
A sentencing hearing for Thompson has not yet been scheduled.
This case was investigated by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs – Office of Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hannah Nowalk.