Kentucky Panhandler Rakes In $100,000 Annually


A man pretending to be mentally and physically handicapped has claimed that he makes $100,000 annually, duping kind and otherwise law-abiding citizens in Lexington, Ky.

Gary Thompson says that he makes, “Anything from 60,0000 to 100,00 dollars. I am normal, it just helps to be mentally handicapped.”

Thompson has twice been arrested for the offense and both times been found guilty. Thompson alters his speech and maneuvers his hands so as to make it seem as if he has a mental disability. In 1993, he was given a $2.4 million settlement related to a motorcycle accident. He told the Daily Mail that he and his family spent all the money.

Thompson said he was glad to have been caught.

Read more in the Daily Mail’s feature story.


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