Found Guilty of Fraud, Former Deputy Sheriff Owes Ohio BWC $235K

A Zanesville, Ohio, man and former county deputy sheriff must reimburse the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) nearly $235,000 in restitution after being convicted on Sept. 23 on workers’ compensation fraud charges

A judge ordered Gregory A. Fitzer, 56, to pay BWC $211,536 in restitution and $23,187 in investigative costs after Fitzer pleaded guilty to a fourth-degree felony charge of workers’ compensation fraud. She also ordered the former Muskingum County deputy sheriff to serve four years of probation in lieu of a year in jail.

Acting on a tip, BWC’s Special Investigations Department discovered Fitzer worked as a process server and investigator for several law firms in and around Zanesville from January 2007 to March 2016 while collecting disability benefits from BWC.

The investigation, which included surveillance, multiple interviews and a review of bank and employment records, also found he worked as a truck driver and laborer for a local retailer.

Source: Ohio BWC