In a Thursday announcement, acting U.S. Attorney Kevin Feldis reported that U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason sentenced 57-year-old Postal Service employee Amancio Zamora Agcaoili Jr to 30 months in federal prison after Agcaoili pled guilty to ten counts of wire fraud, theft of government funds, Federal Employees’ Compensation Act fraud, and social security fraud. The postal worker must also be under supervised release for a period of three years after his confinement.

The guilty plea was a result of an investigation by the United States Postal Service Office of the Inspector General and Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General that found that Agcaoili, over a period of at least five years, from 2009 until 2014, faked disabilities and defrauded the Department of Labor Office of Workers’ Compensation Program (OWCP) and the Social Security Administration Disability Insurance Benefits (DIB) program.

During that time, Agcaoili “received both federal workers’ compensation and federal social security disability payments by misrepresenting the nature and extent of his injury, and concealing the fact that he was working and earning income while receiving disability payments from government programs. Despite Agcaoili’s disability claims, Agcaoili engaged in numerous physical activities throughout the last five years showing that he was faking the extent of his injuries in order to obtain worker’s compensation and social security payments,” the Department of Justice stated.

Feldis further said in the press release, “Agcaoili went dipnetting and fishing every year on the Copper River and the Kenai River, went dancing and sledding, and took vacations to Hawaii, Canada, and the Philippines. Despite his active lifestyle and clear physical capabilities, Agcaoili continued to maintain that he was incapable of working, going so far as to walk with a cane when he visited a doctor.”

According to Feldis, Agcaoili continued to file false certifications and repeatedly lied to the federal government about not working, when in fact he was working in an office in his back yard, preparing immigration paperwork and doing tax returns for hundreds of people.

In addition, Agcaoili did not report to Social Security that he was receiving compensation payments from the Department of Labor and did not report to the Department of Labor that he was receiving Social Security disability payments, drawing hundreds of thousands from the programs. As a result, Agcaoili drew approximately $365,831.50 from the two programs that he was not entitled to.

At sentencing, Judge Gleason said the sentence was needed to deter both Agcaoili and others from abusing the programs.

“Thirty months in prison will serve as a deterrent to others who are tempted to try similar scams. Agcaoili cheated every one of us when he lied about his injuries and his inability to work in order to receive hundreds of thousands of dollars in worker’s compensation and disability payments,” said Kevin Feldis, First Assistant U.S. Attorney and Criminal Division Chief for the District of Alaska. “Nobody should tolerate such fraud, and each time someone intentionally defrauds the United States in order to receive federal benefits, he or she undermines the integrity of these federal programs, making it less likely that they will be available for those who truly need them. Our office places a priority on prosecuting those who choose to criminally misuse and abuse federal programs and funds for their own personal gain, and we commend those who investigate and report these offenses.”

Agcaoili must also pay restitution in the amount of $365,832.50 to the United States Department of Labor Office of Workers’ Compensation and the Social Security Administration. He also forfeited $14,141 in cash that was seized from his residence.

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