BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - A western New York man says he’s been wrongly accused of faking a disability to obtain $9,000 a month in veterans’ and workers’ compensation benefits.
Federal prosecutors in western New York announced fraud charges Friday against Richard Klaffka, of Holland.
Prosecutors say Klaffka told the Veterans Administration he was in a wheelchair and unable to walk, drive or dress himself because of an injury in the military in 1978.
He also gets benefits from another injury suffered while working for the Postal Service.
Klaffka told The Associated Press Saturday that he was “floored” by the allegations.
He said his disabilities are real and that he’s had multiple surgeries, all medically documented.
He says, “How they could say this is some kind of fraud, I have no idea.”
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