Yeah, PTSD is real. And some people really are screwed up bigtime from it. <\/p>\n
But I have my doubts whether all PTSD claims are on the up-an-up. I wouldn’t be surprised to find out a large fraction are BS, either totally or in part.<\/p>\n
Why? Well, if the multiple doubtful cases previously presented here at TAH weren’t enough – here’s yet another reason.<\/p>\n
Short version: a guy named Michael Pecka from Fairport, NY, claimed to suffer from \u201cPTSD\u201d. He claimed it was due to \u201cwitnessing\u201d and \u201chelping investigate\u201d two suicides while serving in Kuwait during 2004-2005. The experience supposedly left Pecka \u201ctraumatized,\u201d and he filed disability claims with the VA twice on that basis, in 2011 and 2014. <\/p>\n
The VA granted Pecka compensation for his \u201cPTSD\u201d – to the tune of $3,000+ monthly. He eventually collected about $92,000 in tax-free VA disability compensation.<\/p>\n
Yeah, the words in quotes above are in quotes for a reason. When the VA OIG investigated Pecka\u2019s case in detail, they found he didn\u2019t witness either suicide or help with any investigations. Hell, he wasn\u2019t even in the same country at the time one of the suicides occurred (the suicide in question occurred IVO Fort Drum while Pecka was deployed to Kuwait).<\/p>\n
Oh, and did I mention that Pecka had the gall to file the first of his claims with the VA while in prison on unrelated bank fraud charges<\/i>? Color me \u201cshocked, shocked\u201d to find out that a convicted fraudster would attempt yet another fraud.<\/p>\n
Pecka recently pleaded guilty to making a false claim in connection with his VA disability application. He\u2019s now facing a maximum possible sentence of 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. He\u2019s to be sentenced in Jan 2019. <\/p>\n
You can read more about the case in this article<\/i><\/a>. Personally, I hope the judge gives this lying a-hole the absolute max sentence (and fine) allowed. I also hope the judge orders Pecka to pay restitution.<\/p>\n We give the VA grief when they screw up. But here, the VA figured out that they were dealing with a Pecka-head sh!tbag \u2013 and nailed him to the wall. <\/p>\n Kudos, VA OIG. Hopefully, this is just a start. Perhaps perusing this site’s archives would be helpful in the way of leads.<\/p>\n —–<\/p>\n Note<\/u>: hat tip to frequent commenter AnotherPat for originally identifying the case in <\/i>this comment<\/a> to another article.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"