Charge: Couple falsely claimed 223,000 in workers comp
TUMWATER, Wash. (AP) - A Tacoma couple has been charged with falsely claiming workers compensation benefits and pocketing $223,000.
The state Department of Labor & Industries says 63-year-old Jamie S. Beroth collected $100,664 in benefits between March 2009 and July 2011 for a workplace injury claim. Her husband, 67-year-old Lawrence Beroth, also received $123,094.02 in time-loss benefit payments from August 2009 to October 2011 for an industrial injury.
Both claimed they were unable to work during this period. But department investigators allege the couple continued working on their drywall business.
The couple pleaded not guilty last Thursday in Pierce County Superior Court.
The total amount of restitution the court could order them to repay is $223,758.31, which is the amount of time-loss benefits that they collected illegally.
The state Department of Labor & Industries says 63-year-old Jamie S. Beroth collected $100,664 in benefits between March 2009 and July 2011 for a workplace injury claim. Her husband, 67-year-old Lawrence Beroth, also received $123,094.02 in time-loss benefit payments from August 2009 to October 2011 for an industrial injury.
Both claimed they were unable to work during this period. But department investigators allege the couple continued working on their drywall business.
The couple pleaded not guilty last Thursday in Pierce County Superior Court.
The total amount of restitution the court could order them to repay is $223,758.31, which is the amount of time-loss benefits that they collected illegally.
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Holy cow. They made that much falsely collecting L&I benefits for TWO years? That means the husband was pulling in $4,730 a month and the wife was pulling in $3,595 a month for a grand total of $8,325 PER MONTH. And yet these idiots continued to work? Who can't live off of $8,000 per month?! Greedy-ass mothereffers.
 @Tattooed_Angel They probably are adding in any medical benefits paid on their behalf. That might be half the cost there!
Enjoy your time in the gray-bar hotel! Oh and by the way, time to pay that money back with interest.
Could order them to pay? It should be make them pay back every dime of the money. These people are just common thieves and they should be taken to task for what they did.
 @Jatok It would probably cost more to "supervise" and "audit" these people for the 20 years to pay this back, let alone even hope they will live that long.
@RTNavy Well, to just keep letting people get away with this is costing lots of money too. I'd rather see the state collect what they can from these people than let them get off scott free. They have a drywall business, that's a good place to start.
@Jatok put a lien on their business or home -
as a health care practitioner i don't understand....doctors must document the inabilities to work, evaluations can be required by L&I docs. is this story saying the documentation was in place yet the couple worked anyway ?
 @justme Good point.  They should probably be investigating the doctor as well.
Should at least double the penalty to try and make sure others don't try to scam the public.