SSA looks for answers in captivity case

NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) - The Social Security Administration is investigating how Linda Weston allegedly cashed disability checks of several mentally challenged people. Those people, including Herbert Knowles, of Norfolk, were found chained and locked in a Philadelphia basement.

Knowles's niece remembers when the Westons came into her uncle's life in Norfolk.

"He met a girl and her mom wanted to move in with them, of course we were against it. His own case worker was against it, but Social Security allowed it to happen," Tiffany Davis said.

Investigators accuse Linda Weston, a convicted murderer, of taking Knowles's Social Security money after he moved in. The agency said she's legally disqualified from cashing the victims' government disability checks because of her criminal past.

WAVY.com asked local social security representatives how this crime could happen. The Philadelphia office e-mailed WAVY.com and said no comment could be provided about the ongoing investigation, but went on to say that despite limited resources it "recently strengthened our oversight of organizational payees, such as contracting with protection and advocacy groups to evaluate the performance of representative payees."

A representative payee is someone who takes care of someone else's finances.

"Social Security demands that you account for every dime," Sam Hochberg, of Norfolk's Up Center, said.

Up Center takes care of money for the mentally disabled. "We pay their rent and then their utilities so they have shelter and electricity and running water," Hochberg explained.

When handling money for the mentally challenged, Hochberg recommends first trying to have a trusted family member take care of the finances.  If that's too daunting, he said relatives can head to a family service agency and ask if it has a representative payee program.  If it does have a representative payee program, he advises that the facility be inspected just as you would a potential group home.

"Come in, look around, see if they're bonded, social security requires us to be bonded to a certain amount," Hochberg added.

Hochberg told WAVY.com, bottom line, finances are where you must pay attention to detail. "People will do very bad things for money. If there's some evil person out there that wants to take advantage of a disabled person, this is the area that they'll do it in right here."

Here are some local agencies with representative payee programs:

The UP Center
Catholic Charities of Eastern Virginia
Center for Child and Family Services

Click here for full details on representaive payee programs.