The country's oldest living veteran was a victim of identity theft.
Richard Overton celebrated his 112th birthday in May with the hopes of living out the rest of his days in peace with a cigar in hand. But other people had different ideas. Thieves emptied out his accounts and left him for broke.
According to CNN, the WWII veteran and East Austin, Texas, resident was not made aware of the identity theft until his cousin checked the account on June 28.
"I looked at it — what the hell are these debits?" Overton's cousin, Volma Overton Jr., told CNN affiliate KXAN.
No one knows how anyone got access to his social security and personal checking accounts. The suspect brought several saving bonds with Treasury Direct in the past few months.
"It's a shock, it hurts, it hurts tremendously," Overton Jr. said.
In 2016, a GoFundMe campaign was launched in his name that raised $366,600 of $400,000 goal. No one has stated how much was taken but the family said the amount was considerable.
Overton has made news in the past few years for being the oldest living veteran in America.
He volunteered in World War II and served in the armed forces in the Pacific Theater from 1942 to 1945 as part of the all-black 1887th Engineer Aviation Battalion.
Racism and segregation in the U.S. was one thing but fighting the Japanese in the Pacific was a different type of hell. When he returned back to America, he built a home where he's lived for more than 70 years.
His service to the country has garnered a mural in his name, meetings with former President Barack Obama, former Secretary of State Colin Powell and a private tour of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
“I love to have a birthday,” Overton told The Statesman. “That’s another day. I hope I live another five years.”
There is some speculation claiming that someone close may have done the deed but there are no suspects at the time.