Enfield Resident Pleads Guilty To Illegally Obtaining VA Benefits

ENFIELD, CT — An Enfield resident pleaded guilty before a federal judge via teleconference Friday in connection with the defrauding of nearly $70,000 from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs over a period of two and a half years.

Derrick Brewer, 37, pleaded guilty to one count of theft of government funds, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. He is scheduled to be sentenced May 27, according to Leonard C. Boyle, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in March 2018, Brewer submitted paperwork to the VA offices in Hartford as part of an application for service-connected disability benefits. Specifically, he submitted a form known as a DD-214, which indicated that his discharge from his former service in the U.S. Coast Guard was characterized as honorable, Boyle said.

The DD-214 had been altered prior to its submission, as official Coast Guard records show Brewer’s discharge was characterized as :"Other Than Honorable Conditions" following his convictions under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. There is no record of the discharge characterization ever having been upgraded, Boyle said.

As a result, Brewer collected about $69,584.16 in VA benefits from March 2018 through Sept. 2020. He was arrested on a criminal complaint on Oct. 29, 2020, Boyle said.

Brewer is released on a $10,000 bond pending sentencing.