Man, 80, Going To Jail For Stealing Thousands From Veterans' Funeral Fund
BALDWIN (KDKA) -- A local man is going to jail after investigators say he stole thousands of dollars from a military veterans' funeral fund.
Patrick Gorman, 80, of Baldwin Borough, is scheduled to begin serving a jail sentence of up to two years next Monday.
Judge David Cashman sentenced Gorman on Thursday after the elderly man had previously been found guilty on theft-related charges.
Prosecutors said Gorman used a VFW Honor Guard account for his own personal benefit, stealing more than $40,000 over a four-year period.
The money was supposed to be deposited in a special VFW account; but instead, it ended up in a bank account controlled by Gorman.
VFW Post 1810 in Brentwood discovered the irregularities and terminated Gorman two years ago. Authorities say he served as captain of the Honor Guard account.
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Richard Williams, who now oversees the account, says, "The message is when somebody does something like Pat Gorman did, you deal with it, instead of turning a blind eye."
Williams said the entire VFW Board voted to terminate Gorman when they discovered he was spending donation money on things like furniture, car repairs and iTunes.
The money is donated by members of deceased veterans' families, cemeteries and funeral homes to help pay for Honor Guard expenses.