Former San Mateo County clerk sentenced for faking back injury to collect disability

Aug. 22--A former San Mateo County files clerk caught on video working at restaurants she owned while collecting disability for a supposed back injury was sentenced Thursday to 120 days in jail, according to District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe.

But Superior Court Judge Craig Parsons recommended that sheriff's officials instead confine and electronically monitor Sunita Sagar, 46, inside her home over that period.

Parsons also placed Sagar on probation for three years, but defense attorney Lauren Kramer said the felony fraud charge will be reduced to a misdemeanor after 18 months if she behaves.

Sagar and her husband own multiple restaurant franchises in the Bay Area, including several Denny's, a Baja Fresh and a Jack in the Box, although none in San Mateo County, Wagstaffe said. They also own a computer equipment store in Fremont.

According to prosecutors, Sagar collected disability benefits from 2008 to 2012 for a back injury she reportedly sustained while working. She convinced doctors she was "completely sedentary and could not conduct her daily activities," and requested in-home care, according to Wagstaffe.

But insurance fraud investigators caught Sagar on hidden video "engaged in a very active lifestyle" that included working at her businesses, walking and bending without sign of discomfort, according to Wagstaffe. When her doctors were shown the video, they confirmed that Sagar had misrepresented her disability and was able to work, the district attorney said.

Despite her client's no-contest plea, Kramer said the videos don't prove Sagar was working. The allegations "weren't ever tested," she added, because the case didn't go to trial.

"Obviously we have a very different perspective," Kramer said in a phone interview Thursday. "She indisputably spent time at the restaurants they owned, but she was not involved in the day- to-day operations."

Sagar received approximately $22,000 in undeserved benefits, according to the district attorney's office. On Thursday, she was also ordered to pay restitution to the county totaling $54,773, which include the costs of the investigation, according to Wagstaffe.

Email Bonnie Eslinger at [email protected]; follow her at twitter.com/ bonnieeslinger.

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