3 Sentenced in Houston for Water Hose Fraud Scheme

An insurance fraud scheme in which Houston-area homes were flooded by using water hoses has led to prison for three people.

Multiple insurers were defrauded of more than $5 million over a six-year period, according to court documents

A federal judge sentenced 41-year-old Angela Armstrong of Humble, 55-year-old Daniel Hunger of Angleton and 47-year-old Debbie Rampiarie Ramcharan of Humble.

A jury in June 2007 convicted Armstrong and Ramcharan on multiple counts of mail fraud, engaging in monetary transactions in criminally derived property and conspiracy.

Hunger pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and conspiracy to engage in monetary transactions in property derived from unlawful activity.

Armstrong must serve more than eight years in prison, plus pay $2.3 million in restitution.

Ramcharan was sentenced to nearly four years in prison and must repay $1.3 million.

Hunger was sentenced to one year in prison and must pay restitution of $1.4 million.

The IRS-Criminal Investigation team, the FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service participated in the investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Melissa Annis.

Latest Comments

• May 27, 2008 at 3:00 am

  jontue says:

  They flooded the houses using waterhoses and allowed the water to sit for days causing mold and mildew to grow the size of the claim. You can find the case under the IRS fraud... read more
• May 27, 2008 at 1:47 am

  Anonymous says:

  This article wasnt very well written. I got the impresion that people hooked up hoses to their outdoor taps, put them through the windows, and flooded their houses to collect... read more
• May 27, 2008 at 1:14 am

  iDunno says:

  Why didn't these folks just use standard copper pipes? I suppose I could understand using PVC for drains or waste pipes, but why would someone install fire hoses in their plum... read more