谎称因“9·11”事件心理受创 纽约警察、消防员骗巨额补助.

　　谎称因“9·11”事件心理受创 纽约警察、消防员骗巨额补助

　　More than 100 NYC police and firighters indicted in PTSD scam

　　Though the former New York City police officers and firighters were supposed to be fully disabled -- some suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder after the 9/11 terrorist attacks -- images in court documents released Tuesday painted a starkly different picture.

　　One man smiled behind shades and flipped the bird aboard a Sea-Doo personal watercraft. Another sat at the controls of a helicopter. A mixed martial arts instructor posed with arms crossed. They&aposre seen riding motorcycles, hauling in massive sailfish, slugging softballs for the "NYPD Blues," taking jump shots, running half marathons and golfing, and even giving television news interviews while selling cannoli at Manhattan&aposs famed San Genaro festival.

　　They are among the more than 100 retired New York City police and firighters indicted in a massive Social Security disability scam involving hundreds of millions of dollars, authorities said. More than half the recipients received funds for fraudulent claims for PTSD in the wake of the September 11, 2001, terror attacks on the World Trade Center.

　　"We will chase down every penny that these dishonorable thieves fraudulently pilfered so that the truly heroic firighters, police officers, medics, and civilians who actually risked their lives on September 11, 2001, and are now suffering because of it, can get the care that they critically need," said James T. Hayes, Jr., special agent-in-charge of Homeland Security Investigations New York.

　　The alleged scam spanned more than two decades, with law enforcement officers and firighters coached on how to behave during doctor visits in order to qualify for full disability benits, officials said.

　　"As a New Yorker, as a U.S. citizen, I can only express disgust at the actions of these individuals involved in this scheme, particularly the 72 former members of the New York City Police Department who have certainly disgraced themselves, embarrassed their families, with their abuse of this system," Police Commissioner William Bratton said at a news conference. "The idea that many of them chose the events of 9/11 to claim as the basis of the disability brings further dishonor to themselves."

　　The dendants received up to $50,000 a year because, they claimed, they were no longer able to work, officials said. Many of the claims allegedly involved work-related trauma caused by the 9/11 terror attacks. The 9/11-related claims alone totaled hundreds of thousands of dollars.

　　All the dendants pleaded not guilty Tuesday, according to the Manhattan district attorney&aposs office.

　　The main dendants were identified as Raymond Lavallee, 83, a lawyer and former FBI agent and Nassau County prosecutor; Thomas Hale, 89, a disability consultant; John Minerva, 61, a union official for the Detectives&apos Endowment Association; and Joseph Esposito, 64, a retired police officer. Lavallee also was chi of the rackets bureau in the Nassau County District Attorney&aposs office.

　　Lawyers for Lavallee, Hale and Esposito said the three men deny the charges. Minerva&aposs lawyer could not be reached.

　　"It doesn&apost appear that anyone doubts that initially every single one of these 104 dendants was in fact disabled," said Esposito&aposs lawyer, Brian Griffin. "It appears to be the extent of their disability that&aposs in question."

　　Raymond Perini said his client, Lavallee, a Korean War vet who went to law school on the G.I. Bill, will regain his good name. "We&aposre going to get that reputation back in court when he&aposs found not guilty," he said.

　　Prosecutors said the men allegedly directed and coached hundreds of Social Security Disability Insurance applicants, including many retirees of the NYPD and FDNY, to lie about psychiatric conditions in order to obtain benits.

　　The charges include grand larceny in the first and second degrees, and attempted grand larceny in the second degree. The remaining 102 dendants, all recipients of Social Security disability benits, were charged with grand larceny in the second degree and attempted grand larceny in the second degree.

　　"It&aposs a particularly cynical part of the ... scheme that approximately half of the dendants falsely claimed that their psychiatric disabilities were caused by their association with the terrorist attacks of September 11th," said District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr. "This fraud not only forced federal taxpayers to finance the lifestyles of New York scammers, it also took away, importantly, the already limited resources we have for people who actually suffered from psychiatric disabilities. That includes, of course, the brave first responders who ran toward the fires on September 11th, and who now suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety and other serious but very real psychiatric disabilities."

　　The average annual payment was between $30,000 to $50,000 for each recipient, prosecutors said. Of the dendants, 72 were also collecting pensions as retirees of the NYPD, eight from the New York City Fire Department, five from the New York Department of Correction and one from the Nassau County Police Department.

　　Prosecutors said the dendants were meticulously instructed on how to fail memory tests with plausibility, how to dress and how to behave. Nearly every application included identical descriptions of the activities of daily living: "I nap on and off during the day;" "I have the TV on to keep me company;" "I&aposm up and down all night long."

　　The leaders of the scheme allegedly collected one-time cash payments based on the monthly disability awards -- ranging from approximately $20,000 to $50,000, prosecutors said. In addition, Lavallee also received $6,000 directly from the government for attorney&aposs fees for each applicant.

　　The applicants were instructed to withdraw cash from the bank in increments under $10,000 to avoid raising suspicion or require the filing of government currency reports, according to court papers.

　　Some of those charged went on to hold other jobs, including teaching martial arts, even though the full disability they received involved a diagnosis that they were so traumatized they were incapable of performing any kind of work, officials added.

　　In some instances, prosecutor said, the total amount fraudulently obtained was nearly $500,000 per applicant. The average Social Security Disability Insurance payment to date for the dendants, which included retroactive lump sum payments, was about $210,000.

　　"The applicants were coached to tell Social Security Administration they were unable to perform basic life skills, like cooking for themselves, grooming themselves, paying bills and socializing," Vance said.

　　"Many said they could no longer drive or be out of the house for more than a short walk around the house. The investigation revealed lifestyles that were very different ... One dendant who retired from the police department after an alleged neck injury, and later claimed psychiatric issues ... taught martial arts .. Another former police officer who claimed he could not go outside because he was too depressed and would have panic attacks, posted on Facebook this jetski photo. And ... another police officer claimed identical ailments, and an inability to socialize or leave the house, posted this photo from a fishing trip."

　　Vance said the indictment was "just the beginning" and that investigation "uncovered additional information which will be carully reviewed over the upcoming months."

　　据美国媒体1月7日报道，纽约市多名警察和消防员涉嫌谎称因“9·11”恐怖袭击而患上创伤后应激障碍(PTSD)，以骗取数亿美元的政府补助。

　　***“无耻的小偷”

　　美国当局称，这些多半已经退休的纽约市警察和消防员在他人协助下伪造相关文件，以“证明”其因参与“9·11”事件救援工作而患病，从而骗取政府补助。

　　法庭7日公布的照片显示，涉案人员“因公致残”后的生活并不悲惨，反倒轻松惬意：有人驾驶直升机，有人跑马拉松、打高尔夫，有人从事武术教学，甚至还有人在节日盛宴上叫卖煎饼卷并且开心地接受电视台采访。

　　“我们将追回这些无耻的小偷骗取的每一分钱，让那些曾经以身犯险如今为伤所困的、真正英勇的消防员、警察、医护人员和普通民众得到他们亟需的照料和帮助。”负责调查此案的美国国土安全部特工詹姆斯·海斯表示。

　　在新闻发布会上，纽约市警察局局长威廉·布拉顿厉声谴责涉案人员：“作为纽约人、作为美国公民，我只能对这些人的所作所为感到恶心，尤其是其中的72名纽约市警察局前警员。他们滥用国家的社保体系，令自己丢脸、使家人受辱。他们甚至利用‘9·11’事件来实施诈骗，这更加令人不齿。”

　　***涉案人员获“骗保指导”

　　此案的4名主要被告人分别为83岁的美国联邦调查局前特工兼律师雷蒙德·拉瓦莱、89岁的伤残保险顾问托马斯·黑尔、61岁的工会官员约翰·密涅瓦以及64岁的退休警察约瑟夫·埃斯波西托。

　　检方称，拉瓦莱等4人“指导并训练”102名次要被告人填写社保残障补助申请表，让他们谎称自己患上精神障碍以获利。据悉，涉案次要被告人获得“精心指导”，被告知如何“合理地”通不过记忆测试，如何穿衣打扮、如何待人接物骗过医生。几乎所有申请表上都写有类似的、描述日常生活的语句，例如“白天我睡不踏实、夜晚心里害怕”，“我必须一直开着电视才感觉不那么孤单”。此外，他们还被要求在银行取款时每次不超过1万美元，以免惹人怀疑。

　　申请成功后，每个次要被告人可获得每年2万至5万美元的残障补助，72名纽约市警察还有退休金。而主要被告人的“服务”也不是免费的，他们收取一次性的现金酬劳，大约为2万至5万美元，其中，拉瓦莱还从政府处获得律师费，每起申请收费6000美元。

　　“接受指导后，申请人告诉社会保障总署，他们丧失了基本的生活技能，无法做饭、打扫卫生、进行正常的社交活动。”负责调查此案的美国地方检察官赛勒斯·万斯说。事实上，这些所谓的“残障人士”过着一种截然不同的生活，有些人还在做其他工作，“即使他们自称心理严重受创丧失了工作能力”。

　　目前，106名涉案人员面临多项盗窃及盗窃未遂的指控，但全部被告均否认罪行。对此检方表示起诉仅仅是“开始”，相关调查将继续下去，料将在未来数月发现更多信息。