Former Arkansas Insurance Exec Sentenced for Embezzlement

The former president of a Little Rock, Ark.-based insurance company has been sentenced to one year and one day in prison for embezzlement.

United States District Judge Susan Webber Wright sentenced John Mathis “Matt” Lile, III, age 56, of Little Rock, after the former president of Cosmopolitan Life Insurance Co. pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $100,000.

The case was investigated and prosecuted by the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration.

The now defunct Cosmopolitan Life funded and managed self-insurance healthcare plans for small businesses around Arkansas.

On Sept.19, 2014, Lile pleaded guilty to embezzling Cosmopolitan funds, federal investigators said. Specifically, Lile admitted that he abused his position by using a company-issued American Express credit card to pay for thousands of dollars in personal expenses over a three-year period, including family vacations to Las Vegas, Florida, and Italy, restaurant supplies, luxury cruises, visits to tanning salons, Hannah Montana concert tickets, and outlet mall shopping sprees.

In addition to the prison sentence, Lile was ordered to pay $118,500 in restitution to Cosmopolitan, which is now in receivership with Arkansas Insurance Department. He also must serve three years of supervised release at the end of his prison term.

The FBI and the United States Department of Labor led the investigation. First Assistant United States Attorney Patrick C. Harris and Assistant United States Attorney Alexander D. Morgan prosecuted the case for the United States.

Source: United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas

Topics USA Arkansas