A Montevallo man could spend up to 30 years in jail after he was found guilty of charges related to workers’ compensation fraud during a Nov. 17 trial in the Shelby County Circuit Court.

A jury found Robert Burrows, 44, guilty of two counts of making false statements to receive workers’ compensation benefits and one count of second-degree theft of property.

The jury determined Burrows “misrepresented an injury he received while working at an auto parts store,” when he claimed a board hit him in the head and bruised him.

During the trial, the Alabama attorney general’s office presented video evidence demonstrating Burrows lied to a workers’ compensation doctor regarding the extent and duration of his injury, according to a press release from state Attorney General Troy King.

The misinformation led to more than $2,000 in fraudulent benefits from April-May 2007, said the release.

“It is a crime for someone to misrepresent an injury in order to get workers’ compensation funds longer than he should,” King said. “I am pleased that the jury returned a guilty verdict, and that this defendant will be held accountable for his crime.”

Burrows is scheduled to be sentenced Jan 4, 2010. He could be sentenced up to 10 years per count, and could face up to $18,000 in fines.