Smith County Man Sentenced for Stealing Government Property

TYLER � A 34-year-old Tyler man has been sentenced for stealing government property. Raymond Kyle Welsh pleaded guilty on January 30th theft of government property. He was sentenced yesterday to three years of probation by U.S. District Judge Leonard E. Davis of Tyler. Welsh was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $222,162.14 and ordered to submit to the forfeiture of $26,588.

According to federal prosecutors, from January 2003 to September 2010, Welsh concealed and failed to disclose his financial resources and income in order to receive Social Security and Medicaid benefits. Welsh stole approximately $26,588.00 from the Social Security Administration in the form of Social Security Supplemental Income (SSI) payments and $195,574.14 from the Department of Health and Human Services in the form of Medicaid benefits. Welsh admitted that he knew he was not entitled to the benefits and that they belonged to the United States government.