TUMWATER, Wash. — A roofing contractor is scheduled to be arraigned on charges of theft after fraudulently collecting more than $54,000 in workers’ compensation by claiming an injury left him unable to work as a roofer.
The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) reports that Patrick Dean Farthing of Lakewood claimed an on-the-job shoulder injury in 2010 was so severe he could no longer work. But state investigators observed Farthing, 63, walking on roofs, removing roof tiles, and moving construction equipment and heavy materials.