Jacksonville veteran charged with stealing over $500K in fraudulent benefits

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville man was indicted on charges of stealing over half a million dollars in fraudulent veterans disability benefits.

Jose Calderon-Fuentes, 62, was charged with stealing over $538,000 worth of benefits that he acquired by overstating the extent of his vision disability, according to the federal indictment.

Calderon-Fuentes told the Department of Veterans Affairs that he was unable to see any "better than hand motion or light perception" when in reality, he know that it was a false statement. He gained the benefits from October 1997 through April 2013.