Q: What is the punishment for knowingly collecting bah for being married when the marriage is fraudulent in the Army?
Someone got married to a woman who had previously been married. At least three years ago, he knew that she had her cousin forge her ex-husband's signature on the divorce papers. He still was considered married to her and still collected around two years of BAH, knowing the marriage was fraudulent.
A: This is a unique question - fraudulent marriages are normally marriages that, at the time the marriage occurred, were done with the intent to wrongfully obtain certain benefits, like BAH. It sounds like the marriage was legit and not for the purpose of stealing BAH, so the intent would be absent, thus no larceny of BAH. There may be a separate crimes such as false statements, but that would require an in-depth review of the case.
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