A 75-year old Barrie man is charged with fraud over $5,000 and utter forged documents after police allege he collected social security benefits from his dead parents.
The investigation began in 2012 when the United States Social Security Administration began a a probe when the deserving recipient of the social security cheques would have turned 100 years old.
The U.S. agency was attempting to confirm the elderly recipients contact information and residence details.
American authorities then passed along information to the OPP in early 2014 who contacted Barrie Police in December 2014.
The initial investigation revealed that both the mother and father had passed away in 1998 subsequently leading to Barrie Police to continue the investigation where a suspect lived and the crimes were allegedly committed.
Barrie Police media officer Const. Sarah Bamford tells BarrieToday that the accused has lived in Barrie for over 20 years.
His parents have lived in the United States including Niagara Falls, New York, and Florida.
"This was a lengthy investigation involving several agencies which resulted in the successful arrest and charge of a Barrie man for fraud over $5,000 and utter forged document," Bamford said.
Police are not releasing the name of the accused.
He was released on a promise to appear with a future court date in January.
