News Coverage

News Coverage


‘Blind’ veteran who scammed $1M in disability payments: How did it go on so long?

‘Blind’ veteran who scammed $1M in disability payments: How did it go on so long?

- Citizen Times
For 30 years, Buncombe County resident John Paul Cook collected VA disability payments, even garnering several increases along the way as his allegedly poor vision continued to worsen.
By 2016, with those increases for the severity of his “disability,” he was pulling in $3,990 a month. In total, from 1987- 2017, Cook, 57, hauled in $978,138 in VA disability payments and perks such as money for a home remodel.
It was all because of his “blindness,” a condition...

Kansas’ Moran takes over Veterans’ Affairs Committee with focus on suicide prevention

Kansas’ Moran takes over Veterans’ Affairs Committee with focus on suicide prevention

- The Mercury
Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kansas, said he will be leaning on veterans to help him set the agenda when he becomes chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee in January.
Moran, who has a home in Manhattan, will succeed Sen. Johnny Isakson, a Georgia Republican who officially retired this month after two decades on Capitol Hill, including four years chairing the Senate panel which oversees the Department of Veteran Affairs.
Moran, who has served on the committee since he joined...

Korean War Vet Denied VA Benefits for 50 Years, Granted His Retroactive Due - 5 Years after his Death

Korean War Vet Denied VA Benefits for 50 Years, Granted His Retroactive Due - 5 Years after his Death

- Yahoo! News
Thomas Nielson, a veteran who served the U.S. military in Korea from 1950 to 1954, first applied for VA disability benefits in 1960 when an autoimmune disease he developed in the service rendered him unable to pursue full time employment according to a statement by Elite Lawyer Management.
This week, some 50+ years of VA bureaucracy and appeals later, his widow finally received his check for retroactive benefits and her own survivor benefits.
According to the Nielson's lawyer Eric...

Korean War vet denied VA benefits for 50 years, granted 5 years after his death

Korean War vet denied VA benefits for 50 years, granted 5 years after his death

His widow finally received his check for retroactive benefits and her own survivor benefits.

- Fox Business
Thomas Nielson served the U.S. military in Korea from 1950 to 1954.
He first applied for VA disability benefits in 1960 when an autoimmune disease he developed in the service rendered him unable to pursue full time employment, according to a statement by Elite Lawyer Management.
After more than 50 years of VA bureaucracy and appeals later, his widow finally received his check for retroactive benefits and her own survivor benefits.
"A record 50 plus years of spurious VA...

Expert panel debates military justice reform, as Navy targets SEAL championed by Trump

Expert panel debates military justice reform, as Navy targets SEAL championed by Trump

- Fox News
The U.S. Navy's move to potentially punish a decorated Navy SEAL, who was supported by an order from President Trump, is fueling a new debate over the military justice system's treatment of active-duty service members and veterans.
A senior U.S. defense official told Fox News on Tuesday that the top admiral in the Navy planned to announce a review to determine whether to remove SEAL Chief Eddie Gallagher's Trident pin following the president's order to reverse his conviction and sentence...

Five years after his death, Korean War vet awarded more than $720,000 in accrued benefits from VA

Five years after his death, Korean War vet awarded more than $720,000 in accrued benefits from VA

- Stars and Stripes
Thomas Nielson joined the Air Force when he was 17 and was promptly deployed to South Korea where the war against the communist-backed North was just getting underway. He served on the peninsula from 1950-54.
However, Nielson’s real fight began after he returned home and filed for military medical benefits for health problems he believed stemmed from severe dental issues and malnutrition during his service.
Five years after he died in 2014 at age 81, his family finally...

ADS to Pay $16M on Whistleblower Allegations of Defense Contract Fraud

ADS to Pay $16M on Whistleblower Allegations of Defense Contract Fraud

- Whistleblower News Review

ADS Inc., a Virginia-based company that supplies equipment and logistics for the U.S. military’s search-and-rescue operations, has agreed to pay $16 million to resolve allegations that it fraudulently secured government contracts.

ADS obtained numerous contracts that were set aside for small businesses, in spite of the fact that the company made $1 billion from federal contracts alone in 2016, which hardly qualifies for the “small business” category.

ADS Scheme Exposed – Manufactured Front Companies

According to the Justice Department, ADS created a network of smaller companies in order to access contracts through federal programs meant to help small businesses secure them....


US Veterans Affairs Recognizes Health Hazard on Vieques

US Veterans Affairs Recognizes Health Hazard on Vieques

- San Juan Daily Star
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs recently became the first federal government entity to recognize a connection between U.S. Navy activities and human health problems on Vieques with the awarding of a judgment in favor of a former Vieques security guard who suffers from a variety of ailments as a result of his exposure to toxic substances on the island. U.S. Marine veteran Hermogenes Marrero worked as the head of security at Camp Garcia in the island municipality of Vieques where he was...