Brian K. Ditch, 44, of Salem, Mo., was sentenced to 13 years in prison and ordered to repay $1.8 million in government benefits he stole from his uncle, a disabled veteran that Ditch was in charge of and abused for years. (Dent County Sheriff’s Office)
A Missouri man will spend 13 years in prison and pay the government $1.8 million after pleading guilty to abusing his uncle, a disabled Army veteran, hiding his body after the veteran’s death and then collecting his government benefits for years.
Brian K. Ditch, 45, had been solely responsible for his uncle Thomas Clubb, a quadriplegic, since 2008 in the town of Salem and used that position to pocket the federal benefits owed Clubb as a veteran and disabled person. Ditch pleaded guilty in October to four felony counts of wire fraud, one count of aggravated identity theft and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
“This sentencing sends a clear message that the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General will vigorously investigate and hold accountable those who exploit veterans,” Special Agent in Charge Gregory Billingsley, with the VA OIG’s Central Field Office, said in a statement. “Egregious crimes against those who served our nation will not be tolerated, and the VA OIG extends its gratitude to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners for their unwavering commitment to achieving justice in this case.”
For about a decade, Ditch would lock his uncle in a garage for more than a day at a time, beat him, force him to sit in his own waste and deny him access to food or water, according to court documents.
Ditch concealed Clubb’s death in 2019 from relatives, the VA and the Social Security Administration to keep stealing his uncle’s money. He hid Clubb’s body in a shed behind his home and told relatives Clubb had moved into a nursing home, while telling police that his uncle had moved to live with someone else.
Since 2008, the VA deposited about $1.6 million into Clubb’s accounts, and Social Security deposited another $235,210, according to the Justice Department. Ditch used this money to buy exotic reptiles and firearms, according to court documents.
District Judge Zachary M. Bluestone in the Eastern District of Missouri on Thursday ordered Ditch to repay this money in addition to time in prison.
Salem police officers in March found the uncle’s partially frozen body in a trash can, as well as three shotguns, according to court records.
