Mechanic Pleads Guilty to Working While Taking Benefits

Tuesday, October 22, 2019 | 0

A mechanic arrested in February on double-dipping charges has pleaded guilty to larceny, state prosecutors said.

Lawrence Bunting, 50, of Waterford, New York, admitted last week that he had continued working for a car dealership, despite telling authorities that he was injured and could not work, according to a bulletin from the New York Inspector General's office. He collected almost $5,000 in workers' compensation benefits and has agreed to pay full restitution.

Sentencing is set for Jan. 15.

Bunting reported an injury in 2015 at the trucking company where he worked. But investigators found that he continued to work at a car dealership in Selkirk, about 22 miles away, south of Albany.

He worked eight hours a day in a physically demanding job, performing maintenance on cars, working with tools, loading trucks with machinery, replacing tires, operating a front loader to move cars and using a winching system to secure cars to trailers, prosecutors said.