Latest Fraud Headlines
All the headlines from our Fraud Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Eastern Ky. Coal Operator Sentenced to Three Years for Fraud
Jun 29 2007 // An eastern Kentucky coal mine operator who lied to insurance companies about the number of employees he had was sentenced to three years in prison on Monday. Harold Simpson, who has operated mines in several eastern...
Mass. Couple Indicted for Allegedly Destroying Barn for Insurance Monies
Jun 28 2007 // A Middleborough, Mass. couple have been indicted on charges they committed fraud when they attempted to collect insurance money for a barn they deliberately destroyed and then reported to be collapsed. Officials said that...
Vitamin Marketer USANA Hit With Proposed Class-Action Lawsuit
Jun 27 2007 // Independent distributors have filed a lawsuit accusing USANA Health Sciences Inc. of fraud and deception, the latest public-relations blow for the marketer of vitamins and nutritional supplements. The lawsuit, which seeks...
Charlotte, N.C. Resident Arrested for Identity Theft, Insurance Fraud
Jun 26 2007 // A Charlotte, N.C. faces six felony charges including three counts of identity theft and three counts of insurance fraud, according to Insurance Commissioner Jim Long. Insurance Department investigators allege that Leetwain...
Married Insurance Agents Charged in $750,000 Fraud Scheme
Jun 26 2007 // Tanya Cornelia Dampier and her husband, Charles Ray Dampier, both former insurance agents in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., have been arrested for attempting to defraud at least 13 insurance companies of more than $750,000,...
Supreme Court Raises Bar for Investors Bringing Securities Fraud Suits
Jun 25 2007 // The U.S. Supreme Court last Thursday imposed a strict standard that investors must meet to keep alive their lawsuits alleging securities fraud. In an 8-1 decision, the justices said that courts must weigh possible innocent...
32 N.Y. Businessowners Charged with Workers’ Comp Fraud
Jun 25 2007 // The owners of 32 businesses have been accused of lying about their employees to avoid paying into the workers’ compensation fund, state regulators said. The Westchester businesses, mostly small restaurants and delis,...
Virginia Police Cameras Scan for Stolen Cars and License Plates
Jun 25 2007 // Virginia State Police are using digital cameras that can scan highways and parking lots for hot cars and stolen license plates. Using the digital images, police can compare the plates against any database of license...
N.D. Fraud Victims in State’s Largest Case to Receive Full Premiums Back
Jun 25 2007 // Policyholders defrauded by an insurance agent who killed herself in late March will be getting their premiums back in full, in a settlement of the largest insurance premium fraud cause in North Dakota history. Insurance...
Former Ark. Agent Gets Jail Time for Second Fraud Conviction
Jun 25 2007 // Former Arkansas insurance agent Beverly Gowan was sentenced in White County Circuit Court to 18 months detention with the Department of Community Correction for two counts of insurance fraud and one count of Theft of...
Calif. Agent Sentenced for Grand Theft
Jun 25 2007 // A Southern California agent has been convicted of one felony count of grand theft and sentenced to serve jail time and pay full restitution to her victims for stealing more than $11,000 from her clients. According to...
Kentucky Business Owner Under Fraud Investigation
Jun 21 2007 // Northern Kentucky residents are being alerted that an Erlanger business owner is under investigation for selling bogus auto insurance policies, according to Kentucky’s Insurance Commissioner. The Kentucky Office of...
W. Va. Woman Pleads Guilty to Committing Insurance Fraud
Jun 20 2007 // West Virginia Insurance Commissioner, Jane L. Cline, announced that Kelly Cain pleaded guilty earlier this month to one felony count and one misdemeanor count of insurance fraud. Cain, 27, of Shinnston, admitted June 14...
Violent and property crime down in Northeast, reports FBI
Jun 18 2007 // Violent crime increased 1.3 percent in 2006 when compared with data from 2005. However, property crime decreased 2.9 percent for the same time period, according to the FBI. Violent crime was up, except in the Northeast....
News Currents
Jun 18 2007 // Calif. commissioner seeks additional workers’ comp reforms California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner said even after the workers’ compensation reforms of 2005, there still are systemic and structural...
Staged Accidents Arrests Net 27 in Miami
Jun 15 2007 // Florida officials arrested 27 people in an ongoing investigation dubbed “Operation TGIF” because of staged accidents the group perpetrated on Fridays. The ‘staged accident’ ring billed auto insurers...
FBI Breaks Up Large East Coast Auto Theft Ring
Jun 14 2007 // The FBI said it has broken up an East Coast auto theft ring that retagged and sold hundreds of stolen vehicles. The ring had been operating since 1999, stealing vehicles and creating phony certificates of title to match...
Oak Grove, La., Woman Sentenced in Crop Fraud Case
Jun 14 2007 // A northeast Louisiana woman has been sentenced to 16 months in jail and ordered to pay more than $300,000 in restitution after being convicted of crop insurance fraud. Wendy Gail Hayman, 31, of Oak Grove, was sentenced by...
W. Va. Woman Jailed for Committing Workers’ Compensation Fraud
Jun 13 2007 // An Upshur County woman was sentenced to serve time in a West Virgina correctional facility after pleading guilty to worker’s compensation insurance fraud. Stacie L. McLean, age 34 of Buckhannon, W. Va., pleaded...
Bush Administration, SEC at Odds over Scheme Liability in Enron Case
Jun 13 2007 // The Bush administration rejected a Securities and Exchange Commission recommendation in a key Supreme Court case and did not support shareholders suing Wall Street banks for damages over Enron’s collapse. The Justice...
