Binghamton Woman Accused of Stealing Benefits

Prosecutors say a Binghamton woman stole Social Security benefits from her late husband's bank account for nearly a decade.

Authorities say 61-year-old Patricia Williams has been indicted for allegedly withdrawing monthly benefit payments from an account belonging to her deceased husband from May 2005 to December 2013. Officials say the woman's husband died in 1990.

The indictment also alleges that Williams did not reveal the payments to the Social Security Administration and unlawfully collected Supplemental Security Income benefits as a result.

According to the United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of New York, Williams was arraigned on Friday in Binghamton before Judge Andrew Baxter. She was released with conditions pending a trial scheduled before Senior U.S. District Judge Thomas McAvoy.

Prosecutors say if Williams is convicted of all counts in the indictment, she would face up to ten years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

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