The wife decided to brag about her bodybuilder husband on Instagram and brought him to court, declassifying a long-term fraud
'21.06.2022'
Nadezhda Verbitskaya
The Long Islander's multi-year scheme to wrongfully collect disability benefits while he trained for a bodybuilding competition and ran a limousine business has been derailed by a series of social media posts made by his wife, reports NBC New York.
Instagram posts praising Anthony Ragusa's physical transformation into a bodybuilder helped the New York State Attorney General's Office catch the scammer. He was accused of illegally receiving benefits totaling more than $200.
Ragusa, 52, pleaded guilty last week to second-degree grand larceny in front of a state supreme court judge.
Between 2015 and 2020, Ragusa received disability benefits from injuries he sustained back in 2013 as a result of a fall at work. At the time, he was working as an electrician, according to his application for benefits.
On the subject: Scammers tried to scam an elderly woman for $8000, but she outwitted them
New York Attorney General Letitia James said Ragusa's application for disability benefits claimed that his injuries prevented him from bending over, walking for more than 15 minutes, and sitting for more than 30 minutes. According to Ragusa, his injuries allegedly prevented him from doing any work, and therefore he needed disability benefits.
We're announcing the arrest of Anthony Ragusa, of Long Island, for allegedly collecting over $200K in disability benefits despite owning a business and training for bodybuilding competitions.
Disability benefits are for those who need a safety net, not greedy fraud.
- NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) May 20, 2021
However, according to social media posts and working papers, Ragusa has been running his business successfully since his fall and into bodybuilding.
James said her investigators proved that the bodybuilder ran his business for six years while receiving disability benefits. They also examined his wife's Instagram posts from 2017. They show a 52-year-old man lifting weights at a gym known as a mecca for bodybuilders in Sjosset.
“His illegal and shameful actions are an insult to those who actually live with disabilities. And I will always take action to bring scammers like Ragusa to justice on behalf of the people,” James said.
According to James's office, Ragusa must pay $200 to the Social Security Administration after pleading guilty. He will also be on probation for five years.
