Victoria Biks and Marjorie Venturella

Madison, WI: (Aug-08-07) A federal lawsuit was brought against Victoria Biks, 44, and Marjorie Venturella, 69, a mother and daughter team, accusing them of engaging in a 20-year-long scheme to defraud state, local and federal social service agencies out of $280,000. Biks and Venturella were indicted last year with 30 counts of Social Security fraud and two counts of mail fraud in connection with hiding from public agencies the $1.23 million awarded to the estate of a boy born to Biks in 1980. Biks begin lawfully receiving Supplement Security Income in September 1981 but became ineligible two years later when the estate of her son, Paul Venturella, received a $1.23 million damage award from a medical malpractice law in Cook County, Illinois. Biks and Venturella also applied for and received funds from Medicare, Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services, Sawyer County Department of Social Services and Sawyer County Circuit Court. The cover-up allowed the defendants to obtain more than $100,000 in SSA benefits, which the defendants deposited into their personal checking accounts. The two pleaded guilty to allegations of mail fraud. Biks and Venturella each face statutory maximums penalties of 10 years in prison, $100,000 fines and three years supervised release. The government also intends to seek fines of $114,313. [SAWYER COUNTY RECORD: SOCIAL SECURITY FRAUD]

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Published on Aug-10-07