Baker Accused of Workers' Comp Fraud After Allegedly Working as Nanny

Tuesday, May 17, 2016 | 0

A woman who was injured during a robbery at a cafe she worked at in Seattle has been accused by the Washington Attorney General’s Office of workers’ compensation fraud, according to the Federal Way Mirror newspaper.

The AG filed charges against Yurizan Cuevas for allegedly working another job while collecting workers’ compensation indemnity benefits for an injury she said had left her unable to work.

According to the news report, Cuevas was working as a baker and cashier at a café in when it was robbed in 2010. As she ran away from the robber, she ran into a wall and hurt her back, for which she later filed a workers’ compensation claim. Her doctor said she couldn’t work due to her injury, and she received treatment and began collecting indemnity benefits.

However, starting in September 2011, she allegedly started working as a full-time nanny earning about $3,2000 a month, when she was still collecting benefits for her workplace injury, an investigation by the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries found.

She worked for six weeks as a housekeeper as well, despite stating on official forms that she was unable to return to work for her at-injury employer due to her injuries.

The AG says she illegally collected more than $24,800 in wage-replacement checks in the last few years.