Bremerton woman accused of faking birth for state benefits

PORT ORCHARD, Wash. (AP) — A 42-year-old Bremerton woman is accused of lying about giving birth in order to get more than $3,000 worth of public benefits from the state.

The Kitsap Sun says the woman was charged Tuesday in Kitsap County Superior Court with first-degree theft and false public assistance verification.

An investigator with the state alleges the woman lied about being pregnant and giving birth on the roadside in the town of Gorst.

The investigator's report doesn't indicate how investigators began to suspect the woman of fraud. Workers with the state Department of Social and Health Services couldn't confirm information the woman provided.

The department said the woman received $3,210 in cash and food assistance which she knew she was not entitled to between December 2015 and September.