Stripper faces trial over workers' comp claim

Woman charged with working as exotic dancer while collecting for injuries incurred at waitress job. A Quakertown woman accused of performing as a stripper in Wilson while receiving workers' compensation payments for a back injury she sustained a year earlier while employed as a waitress will face trial in Bucks County Court next month. Christina Gamble, 43, of Braxton Court, waived a preliminary hearing that was scheduled for Tuesday before Quakertown District Judge Robert Roth. She is scheduled to be arraigned Friday in Bucks County Court, and a trial has been set for Sept. 9. According to court papers, Gamble worked as a waitress at Red Robin. Private investigators working for the restaurant chain's insurance carrier observed Gamble working at C.R. Fanny's Gentlemen's Club and Sports Bar in Wilson in November and December 2008, while she was collecting benefits. She faces two workers' compensation fraud charges and one charge of theft. Gamble told Red Robin management in November 2007 that she hurt her back after slipping while on the job, and quit, prosecutors allege. The company's insurer, Highmark Insurance, denied Gamble's initial claim, but a worker's compensation judge granted her $360 a week in benefits in October 2008. Gamble is accused of telling her doctor on Nov. 20, 2008, that she was still unable to work because standing and changing positions were a problem. Eight days later, private investigators hired by Highmark observed her performing as an exotic dancer at C.R. Fannies, prosecutors say. The investigators returned to the bar on Dec. 30, where they videotaped Gamble's performance. The company used the video to have Gamble's workers' compensation benefits terminated in early 2009. Prosecutors say Gamble collected a total of $22,727 in disability benefits and $4,118 in medical expenses from Highmark, about $2,006 of that after being caught on tape working as an exotic dancer, according to charging documents. Gamble was released on her own recognizance after being charged in April. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of seven years in prison and a $15,000 fine. [view link]