Rhode Island Woman Charged With Workers’ Comp Fraud to Pay $10K

A 76-year-old Providence, R.I., woman must pay $10,000 in restitution on a charge of obtaining money under false pretenses for allegedly collecting workers’ compensation benefits while she was employed.

The state attorney general and state labor department director said Wednesday that Marta Rangel pleaded no contest in Providence Superior Court. She was charged with one count of obtaining money under false pretenses for allegedly collecting over $10,000 in workers’ compensation insurance benefits while working at a Cranston health services facility.

Prosecutors say that between February 2010 and June 2011 Rangel failed to report she had returned to work and failed to report her earnings.

State officials say they have made fraud prevention, detection and prosecution a top priority.