NEWARK, N.J. – U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger has announced the arrest of an Essex County woman for her alleged involvement in a long-term scheme to defraud federal retirement benefit programs.
Janis Miller, 77, from South Orange, New Jersey, is charged with wire fraud after being accused of illegally obtaining over $1 million in benefits intended for her deceased aunt. Miller appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jessica S. Allen in Newark federal court and was released on a $100,000 unsecured bond.
The investigation revealed that following her aunt’s death in 1998, the Social Security Administration (SSA) and U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) unknowingly continued to deposit retirement and survivor benefits into the aunt’s account. Miller allegedly accessed these funds through debit card use, cash withdrawals, and forged checks. In 2022, Miller reportedly impersonated her deceased aunt in a phone call with an SSA employee to maintain the fraudulent benefits. The scheme, which lasted about 25 years, was eventually uncovered by the OPM and SSA, leading to the discontinuation of the benefits.
The charge of wire fraud carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a significant fine, either $250,000 or double the pecuniary gain or loss from the offense, whichever is higher.
The investigation was led by the SSA’s Office of the Inspector General and the OPM’s Office of the Inspector General.