Summary

On October 29, 2015, Joyce B. Scott, former Deputy Regional Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Great Lakes Region, Des Plaines, Illinois, pleaded guilty to theft in U.S. District Court, Chicago, Illinois. She was previously charged with embezzlement related to fraudulently collecting her grandmother's Social Security Administration (SSA) benefits for several years after the grandmother passed away.

At the time of the grandmother's death on November 5, 2004, Scott shared a joint checking account with her grandmother, where her grandmother's SSA benefits were deposited. Following her death, the SSA benefits continued to be deposited monthly into the account as Scott did not close the account nor did she remove her grandmother's name from the account. The benefits continued until October 2010 when SSA discovered that Scott's grandmother was deceased. Scott spent the benefits deposited into the account, totaling approximately $24,000.

We worked this investigation jointly with the SSA, Office of Inspector General.