Former NC cop lied about losing use of his legs in Vietnam to claim benefits, feds say
A 73-year-old Vietnam veteran and former police officer in North Carolina has dodged prison after prosecutors said he used an injury from more than 50 years ago to fraudulently claim Veterans Affairs benefits, according to the U.S. Justice Department.
Instead, a federal judge sentenced him to five years’ probation and 250 hours of community service.
Willie Dosher Cain — a 15-year veteran of the Fayetteville Police Department who served in Vietnam and the Middle East — was also ordered to pay more than $900,000 in restitution and forfeit a mobility scooter and condominium he’s accused of obtaining with fraudulent VA benefits, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of North Carolina said Wednesday in a news release.
Cain’s age, prior military service and the “ongoing COVID-19 pandemic” were a factor in his sentencing, according to the release.
Beginning in 2008, prosecutors said Cain told the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs he lost the use of his legs as a result of a war injury and relied on a wheelchair and motorized scooter to get around. He also claimed his wife had to dress and clean him.
In reality, Cain had an “active lifestyle throughout this time, including working as a firearms and concealed carry instructor, enjoying beach activities, playing basketball, dancing and attending social events,” the news release states.
Attorneys representing Cain told McClatchy News in a statement Thursday he was “appreciative of the mercy shown him by the Court.”
“After a lifetime devoted to the service of his country and fellow citizens, Mr. Cain made a terrible mistake to exaggerate his already debilitating injuries to receive additional benefits,” defense attorney Christopher R. Clifton of the law firm Grace, Tisdale & Clifton P.A. said. “He will live the rest of his life bowed by the weight of a felony conviction.”
An ‘active lifestyle’
According to court filings, Cain served in the U.S. Army for nearly three decades, beginning in 1964. He was “struck by shrapnel in the buttocks area” during the Vietnam War in 1965 but returned to active service until 1991.
“U.S. Army treatment records characterize this wound as ‘not serious’ and not involving any bones or arteries,” prosecutors said.
After leaving the military, in 1992 Cain joined the Fayetteville Police Department in eastern North Carolina where he “served as a physical training officer, a firearms instructor and a member of the Emergency Response Team,” court filings state.
He retired in 2007 and became a private firearms instructor and head of security at his local church, prosecutors said.
Investigators say Cain didn’t use a wheelchair or scooter while teaching classes or patrolling the church during services. One church official said “they had not ever observed Cain to use a wheel chair or scooter,” court filings state.
Photographs of Cain at the Fayetteville Police gun range with members of the church even showed him “dressed in tactical gear and standing without aid,” prosecutors said.
He also reportedly bought a third-floor condo with no elevator access in Carolina Beach on the coast of North Carolina.
“Inspection revealed that the only access to the unit is by stairs,” court filings state.
Fraudulent benefits
Despite his active life, prosecutors said Cain claimed to be “one hundred percent disabled and unable to work” from 2008 to at least 2019.
Cain reportedly used the 1965 shrapnel injury as the basis for his disability and claimed to be wheelchair bound.
“He also falsely claimed and represented to the VA that as a result of his loss of use of his legs he was ‘helpless’ and required aid from his wife to dress and clean himself,” court documents state.
The VA paid to modify Cain’s home and cars for wheelchair accessibility, prosecutors said, and he received “hundreds of thousands of dollars” in home care aid.
“In fact, as he then well knew, he remained physically active, had not suffered loss of use of his legs, could perform daily functions unaided, including dressing,” prosecutors said.
Court filings show Cain was indicted in October 2019 and pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement in June 2020.
In addition to community service hours and restitution, the judge issued a money judgment order against Cain totaling $150,000. He was also ordered to forfeit more than $155,000 in cash and a modified 2018 Toyota Sienna van, according to Wednesday’s news release.
This story was originally published January 7, 2021 at 11:43 AM with the headline "Former NC cop lied about losing use of his legs in Vietnam to claim benefits, feds say."
