Criminal Investigative Updates

Sharon Toney-Finch of Newburg, New York, was charged with wire fraud, theft of government funds, stolen valor, and altering military discharge paperwork. Allegedly, Toney-Finch engaged in a scheme in which she misappropriated donations for military charities and falsely nominated herself as a Purple Heart recipient to receive disability benefits to which she was not entitled. Between July 2019 and September 2023, she defrauded donors to her charitable organization by falsely claiming that the donated funds would be spent solely to support homeless military veterans, instead spending the funds on personal expenses. This case was investigated by the VA OIG and FBI.

Mikhail Wicker, of Dilworth, Minnesota, was charged with defrauding the VA by falsely claiming to have been a decorated veteran of the US Marine Corps and claiming that he suffered from combat-related injuries that qualified him for disability and other financial benefits. Wicker submitted forged and falsified documents in support of his benefits application to the VA, falsely claiming that he had been a prisoner of war during a deployment in Iraq in 2005. As a result, Wicker received more than $100,000 in benefits, which he was not entitled to because he had never served in the military. Wicker is charged with one count of wire fraud, one count of false military discharge certificates, one count of fraudulent use of military medals, and one count of theft of government funds. The VA OIG, Department of Defense OIG, and Social Security Administration OIG investigated this case with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations and the Dilworth Police Department.

In a case of stolen valor, Darold Maxfield, of North Little Rock, Arkansas, was sentenced to four months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for submitting a falsified disability application to the VA and receiving more than $91,000 in disability payments. Maxfield filed for disability claiming he sustained psychological trauma after he recovered the remains of a cadet who died while conducting a land navigation exercise at the US Military Academy at West Point. He was enrolled at the US Military Academy Prep School when the incident occurred, but evidence proved he was not on the land navigation course at the time the cadet’s remains were located. The VA was alerted to the potential fraud in 2020 when it was discovered that the physician’s signature on the disability questionnaire had been copied and pasted onto Maxfield’s application from another document. The VA OIG and the Army Criminal Investigation Division investigated this case.

Richard Meleski of Chalfont, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to three years and four months in prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $302,121 in restitution for stealing VA benefits by pretending to be a veteran who had been captured by the enemy during combat. In July 2020, Meleski pleaded guilty to one count of healthcare fraud, two counts of mail fraud, one count of stolen valor, two counts of fraudulent military papers, as well as two counts of aiding and abetting straw purchases, and one count of making false statements in connection with receiving Social Security Administration disability benefits.

United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced that Richard Meleski, 58, of Chalfont, PA, pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including healthcare fraud, mail fraud, stolen valor, and aiding and abetting straw purchases of firearms.