Two W.Va. Arrests for Insurance Fraud, Workers’ Comp Forgery

Insurance agent Brenda Valentine of the Mountain State Insurance Agency Inc. has been indicted on six felony counts of insurance fraud; and Scott Saul of Pipeline Services has pleaded guilty to workers’ compensation forgery, according to West Virginia Insurance Commissioner, Jane L. Cline.

Valentine, of Montgomery, W.Va allegedly took money from customers for promised insurance policies and then failed to provide those policies. She also allegedly forged insurance applications in an attempt to prevent discovery of the stolen premium payments.

Valentine was indicted May 11, 2006 by a Fayette County Grand Jury on one felony count of embezzlement, four felony counts of forgery and one felony count of uttering. No trial date has been set.

The premium payments that represented numerous policy holders were replaced by Mountain State Insurance Agency Inc., so that no individual policy holder suffered losses.

Saul pleaded guilty to one felony count of forgery for falsifying certificates of insurance. Saul’s business, Pipeline Services, was attempting to contract for services with Equitable Productions and produced the certificates in an attempt to verify workers’ compensation coverage for his company.

Saul was sentenced to one to 10 years in prison; however, the sentence was suspended after he entered into a plea agreement with the Lincoln County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Saul will serve three years probation.

Anyone with information relating to suspected insurance fraud is urged to call, toll-free, 1-888-372-8392.