W.Va. man pleads to wire fraud for taking over $250K of his father's VA benefits

Julie E. Greene, The Herald-Mail
Updated ·2 min read

MARTINSBURG, WVa. — An Inwood, W.Va., man has pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, admitting to fraudulently taking $253,867.12 from his father, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of West Virginia.

Joseph Michael Beach, 54, agreed to a plea agreement filed Tuesday regarding a wire fraud count from a September 2023 indictment, according to U.S. District Court filings.

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Beach was the fiduciary for his father, who is under the care of a veterans' care facility and receives monthly benefits, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office. Beach received his dad's veteran's disability, retirement and Social Security payments.

But Beach used those funds "for his own benefit," the release states.

"It is always sad when older West Virginians are victimized by their own family members," U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld said in the release. "We will continue to aggressively pursue those who steal from their loved ones in order to enrich themselves."

Beach faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, according to his plea agreement.

At sentencing, the prosecution will dismiss the remaining charges against Beach in this case, the agreement states.

Beach is on pretrial release, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Beach's sentencing is scheduled for June.

According to the indictment for the felony wire fraud count, Beach received the funds, which were intended for his father, in a bank account.

When the VA requested an accounting in 2020 of how his father's benefits were spent, Beach fabricated ledgers, the indictment states.

On Feb. 27, 2021, Beach transmitted or caused to be transmitted a wire/internet communication in Martinsburg that was a "false and fraudulent accounting" of his use of his father's disability benefits to a VA field examiner in Tennessee, the indictment states.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Berkeley County man pleads in case involving father's VA benefits