Fraud Focus

Okla. Agent Goes to Prison

A Stigler, Okla., former insurance agent has begun serving time in prison for insurance-related crimes uncovered earlier this year, the Oklahoma Insurance Department announced.

Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John D. Doak, revoked the insurance license of Amanda Jean Burgess after she was accused by OID anti-fraud investigators of bilking insurance companies she represented and individual customers. She operated under the business name Burgess Insurance Agency.

Burgess, 34, waived her right to a trial and pled guilty to four felony counts of embezzlement, three misdemeanor counts of embezzlement, two felony counts of perjury and one felony count of falsely impersonating another person to create liability.

She was sentenced to a pair of 10-year prison terms – with all but the first five years suspended – and was remanded to the custody of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections. She will face 15 years of probation upon release.

Burgess also was ordered by the court to pay more than $9,100 in fines and court costs, and to make restitution to her victims.

Doak said some of Burgess’ victims were unaware that they had no insurance “after an accident left them with large liabilities and no coverage.”

Amanda Burgess’ husband, Chris Burgess, is charged with one misdemeanor count of obtaining cash or merchandise by bogus check or false pretenses, and one misdemeanor count of issuing security verification without authority. He faces up to two years in jail and a $2,000 fine.

Burning Down the House

A St. Louis, Mo., man and his ex-wife face federal indictment for allegedly burning down their home in 2001, a blaze that killed Zach Kemper, their 15-year-old son.

Prosecutors allege that the former husband and wife, 53-year-old Steven Henry Kemper and 55-year-old Sandra Kay Bryant, were involved in several schemes to defraud insurance companies, including arsons of two residences in 1997 and 1999, and of a home in Florissant, Mo., in November 2001.

Both could receive up to life in prison if convicted.

Garnish on Life

The government wants to garnish a life insurance policy of former Ball, La., Mayor Roy Hebron to ensure payment of court-ordered restitution for a FEMA theft. Hebron owes $123,518 of the $130,666 in restitution.

Hebron pled guilty in 2011 to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government after a federal investigation into the town’s activities following Hurricane Gustav in 2008. He was sentenced to four years.

$30M Fraud in California

An Orange County, Calif., woman was sentenced to a 10 -prison term for committing $30 million in insurance fraud. The case was described as one of the largest-known workers’ compensation insurance fraud cases in California history.

Prosecutors say Devon Lynn Kile’s prison term will be stayed pending successful completion of 10 years of probation.

Between 2000 and 2008, prosecutors say Kile and her co-defendant husband, Michael Petronella, obtained workers’ compensation insurance for their roofing contractor businesses through the state and fraudulently submitted claims for uninsured injured workers. They also underreported payroll and the number of employees they employed.

The couple owned five properties in California and Texas, and owned multiple luxury cars.

Petronella was sentenced last year to 10 years in prison.

Missing Katrina Boat Shows Up Registered

Two Slidell, La., residents have been accused of insurance fraud and other charges linked to a Hurricane Katrina claim.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries reported that enforcement agents cited 78-year-old Robert F. Angle and 77-year-old Joyce G. Angle for theft by insurance fraud, filing false public documents and injuring public records.

An investigation began after a boat the Angles claimed as lost following the 2005 storm, showed up registered in Florida. The boat in question has since been seized by detectives in Lee County, Fla.

The Angles each face up to 10 years in jail and a $3,000 fine if found guilty of theft by insurance fraud. Injuring and filing false public records each bring a fine of up to $5,000 and up to five years in jail.

Hawaii Police Officers Get Busted

An investigation by the Hawaii Insurance Division’s Fraud Branch led to charges against a Honolulu Police Department (HPD) recruit just weeks before his graduation from the academy.

Earl Danielson Jr., 28, pleaded no contest on Dec. 12, 2011, to second-degree insurance fraud and second-degree attempted theft of more than $300. The charges stem from a claim against Progressive Direct Insurance Co. sometime between March 2010 and May 2010.

In an unrelated case, a bench warrant was issued for former HPD officer Richard Moerles, 28. Moerles faces charges of second-degree insurance fraud and second-degree attempted theft.

Moerles was indicted in August 2011 on suspicion of false claims against GEICO Insurance Co. Moerles is believed to be living in Idaho.

Pittsburgh Officer Files Bogus Theft Claim

A Pittsburgh, Pa., police officer has pled not guilty to a federal mail fraud indictment charging him with staging a motorcycle theft so he could collect nearly $15,000 worth of insurance.

Federal prosecutors in Pittsburgh say suspended Kennedy Township Officer Frank Caliguiri Jr. filed the bogus theft claim in 2009, but had really taken the motorcycle to West Virginia where he sold it for a lesser amount. He was indicted on one count of mail fraud for receiving the $14,925 insurance check from Geico on Aug. 26, 2009.

Staged Accidents, False Claims

A Buckhannon, W.Va., man pled guilty to defrauding insurance companies by staging vehicle accidents and filing fake claims.

Forty-two-year-old Christopher John Thrain pled guilty to one count of mail fraud. U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld said Thrain is an auto body repair specialist who talked people into staging accidents. Thrain and others would then file false claims with their insurance companies.

Thrain admitted in court that he used the federal postal system to obtain a check for more than $2,700 as part of that scheme.

Thrain is free on bond but faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine when sentenced.