Postmarks Lead to Fraud Charges Against Ex-New York Man

July 1, 2010

Insurance fraud investigators in New York say a Florida postmark tipped them off that a supposedly injured man who had collected $39,000 in workers’ comp benefits over 20 years was actually living and working in Florida as a mechanic.

State police arrested Kenneth R. Bullock, 52, of St. Regis Falls earlier this week. Investigators say numerous work activity reports Bullock mailed to the New York State Insurance Fund bearing Florida postmarks first aroused suspicion that resulted in an investigation by the Insurance Department’s Frauds Bureau, the Insurance Fund and state police.

Investigators say that Bullock — who claimed he was physically unable to work, and had begun collecting benefits after suffering a back injury while employed as a truck driver in 1990 — was working and living in the Florida.

He has been charged with insurance fraud, workers’ compensation fraud and offering a false instrument for filing. He faces up to seven years in prison if convicted.

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Source: New York State Insurance Department