Teaneck Woman Collected Dead Brother's Disability Pay: Prosecutor

TEANECK, NJ — A Teaneck woman faces theft by deception charges after prosecutors say she continued to access her dead brother's bank account, claiming over $20,000 in disability funds.

The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office announced charges against Wanda Lynn Sermon on Wednesday. She was arrested on Tuesday, and has since been released.

The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Financial Crimes Unit began investigating Sermon in June, after receiving information from the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General’s Office of Investigations New Jersey Field Division.

According to prosecutors, Sermon didn't tell the Social Security Administration of her brother's death, but continued to let his checks come in while assuming control of his bank account.

She continued to access his Social Security disability benefit funds for almost a year-and-a-half, collecting $20,438, prosecutors said.