Fraud Charges Against Tennessee Man Named After Babe Ruth
A man from Tennessee, sharing the name with baseball great Babe Ruth, is facing serious allegations. He reportedly made false claims for payments from class action settlements, utilizing the identities of numerous deceased or retiring professional athletes.
George Herman Ruth, 69, from Morristown, was charged with 91 counts, according to a report filed in U.S. District Court in Greenville, Tennessee, on August 12. This announcement came from the U.S. Attorney’s Office late last week.
The charges include postal fraud, aggravated identity theft, improper use of Social Security numbers, money laundering, making false statements to his probation officer, and possession of a firearm, all while having a prior felony conviction.
The indictment states that Ruth allegedly attempted to acquire over $550,000 through these fraudulent activities. Interestingly, it’s not clear if he was born George Herman Ruth or adopted the name later in life.
He sought payments from various settlements, which included claims related to contact lens pricing and allegations of racism, as detailed in the indictment.
Ruth reportedly opened numerous post office boxes across different Tennessee cities, both in his name and under fictitious businesses. He submitted hundreds of fraudulent claim forms to class action administrators nationwide.
According to prosecutors, he employed the names of former baseball players, variations of his own name, and Social Security numbers of unsuspecting victims.
The indictment doesn’t specify the names of the players implicated in Ruth’s claims, but it does mention that some of them played for defunct teams like the Philadelphia Athletics and the St. Louis Browns.
The public defender representing Ruth has chosen not to comment on the accusations.
Previously, Ruth had pleaded guilty to social security fraud in a separate case in Indiana. Court records indicate that he was incarcerated from October 2020 until July 2021, after which he was placed on probation.
