Social Security Administration employee accused of stealing from beneficiaries

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Add this to the list of concerns about receiving Social Security benefits.

A federal grand jury has indicted an employee at the Social Security Administration’s Whittier office on charges that she stole money from beneficiaries.

Gezal Rebbecca Duran, 32, of Pomona was indicted Tuesday on four counts of theft by a government employee.

Duran, who worked as a claims representative, allegedly told benefit recipients that they had received overpayments and needed to pay her in order to bring their accounts current. Investigators believe she stole more than $17,000 from at least 15 benefit recipients, said Thom Mrozek, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles.

The investigation is continuing, Mrozek said.

Duran, who is free on bond, is scheduled to be arraigned Aug. 29. The charges she faces carry a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison.

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Photo: Social Security Administration sign. Credit: Associated Press