A federal judge has ordered a woman from the Penobscot County town of Woodville to pay $103,596.91 in restitution after lying to multiple government social service programs to receive benefits.
Rella Austin-Kimball, 51, was sentenced in U.S. District court in Bangor for Social Security fraud, health care fraud, and theft of public money. She pleaded guilty on May 26, 2023.
According to court records cited by the U.S. Department of Justice in a news release, from about January 2005 through March 2021, Austin-Kimball lied to the government agencies about her husband’s presence in her household and failed to report that she was receiving alimony payments after her divorce, which made her fraudulently appear eligible for benefits for a child who was a minor at the time.
The restitution order consists of $78,858.25 to the Social Security Administration, $4,550.66 for the MaineCare program, and $20,188 for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Austin-Kimball was also sentenced to serve three years of probation.
