Latest Fraud Headlines
All the headlines from our Fraud Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Virginia Bill Would Require Notice When Personal Data Is Lost or Stolen
Jan 16 2007 // Two Virginia lawmakers said this week that they will introduce legislation requiring government agencies and businesses to notify Virginians if their personal information is lost or stolen. Del. Robert Brink, D-Arlington,...
Former Saginaw Mayor Charged with Arson, Insurance Fraud
Jan 15 2007 // Former Sagnaw Mayor Wilmer Jones Ham was recently charged with arson and insurance fraud in the burning of her 1986 Mercedes-Benz. Ham, 56, is the mother of ex-Detroit Pistons player Darvin Ham, who was part of the 2004...
La. Police Officer Resigns After Fraud Accusation
Jan 15 2007 // A Shreveport, La., police officer resigned after he was accused of changing a police report to claim that his wife had insurance when another car hit hers. Cpl. Ronald Small and Tracey Small were booked Jan. 12 at Caddo...
Oneonta, N.Y. Business Owner Pleads Gulity to Insurance Fraud
Jan 11 2007 // Jeffrey Gelbsman, an Oneonta, N.Y. businessman, has pled guilty to fourth-degree insurance fraud related to a fire that occurred at Monser Brothers Tire Sales, Inc. in Oneonta in August 2002, according to Acting...
101 Indicted in Calif. Insurance Fraud Sting
Jan 11 2007 // A two-year undercover sting operation by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office has resulted in 101 indictments, of which 88 have been arrested to date. Following a tip from a confidential informant, an...
W. Va. Man Jailed, Indicted on Insurance Fraud Charge
Jan 9 2007 // Reynoldsville, W. Va., resident Carl Lee Gallo was indicted last week on one felony count of attempting to secure workers compensation benefits in excess of $1,000, according to officials. The 67 year old Gallo is...
Calif. Insurance Commissioner Poizner Sworn In
Jan 9 2007 // Steve Poizner took the Oath of Office Monday afternoon, becoming California’s new Insurance Commissioner. During his remarks, Poizner vowed to make the office bi-partisan, lower insurance rates by combatting fraud,...
Six Arrested in Calif. Insurance Fraud Scheme, 16 Others Wanted
Jan 8 2007 // Eighty-six people have been arrested on suspicion of bilking insurance companies out of more than $500,000, one of California’s largest ever insurance fraud cases, the district attorney’s office said. The 86...
Ky. Law Enforcement Veteran to Lead Insurance Fraud Unit
Jan 8 2007 // A former chief of police in Louisville has been appointed director of the Insurance Fraud Investigation Division of the Kentucky Office of Insurance. Eugene Sherrard began his career in 1971 as a dispatcher for the...
Enron’s legacies and directors’ and officers’ risk
Jan 8 2007 // Shortly after former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling’s Oct. 23, 2006, sentencing, the Enron Task Force said it was closing down, with its mission mostly complete. Yet did that event really signal an endpoint in the Enron...
Enron’s legacies and directors’ and officers’ risk
Jan 7 2007 // Shortly after former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling’s Oct. 23, 2006, sentencing, the Enron Task Force said it was closing down, with its mission mostly complete. Yet did that event really signal an endpoint in the Enron...
Fugitive Minister, Damaging Adjustor Among Pa.’s Top Fraudsters in 2006
Jan 5 2007 // Imagine public adjustor being caught red-handed on an insurance agent’s digital camera causing damage to a home that was supposedly a result of a storm. This scenario involves just one of the criminals highlighted on...
Billings, Mont. Man Sentenced for Insurance Fraud
Jan 5 2007 // A Billings, Mont., insurance agent who pleaded guilty to fraud was sentenced to three years in prison. Michael D. Hutton, 59, was also ordered to pay $185,000 in restitution. U.S. District Judge Jack Shanstrom said Hutton...
Los Angeles CPCU Hosts Fraud Seminar
Jan 3 2007 // The Los Angeles Chapter of the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter Society is hosting a meeting at 11:30 a.m. on Jan. 9 at the Brasserie Restaurant Sheraton Hotel/Macy’s Plaza on 711 South Hope Street. The...
Rule Restricting R.I. Crime Victim Compensation Challenged
Jan 2 2007 // An association of drug treatment programs is challenging a Rhode Island state policy that allows financial compensation to be denied to crime victims who have been convicted of driving drunk or dealing drugs. The Drug and...
Tennessee Insurance Broker Arrested on $1.8M Wire Fraud Charges
Dec 29 2006 // A Smithville, Tenn., insurance broker was arrested Dec. 27 on 15 federal counts of wire fraud, according to officials. According to the federal grand jury indictment, B. Don James defrauded investors of more than $1.8...
New Ill. Law Effective Jan. 1 Will Help Prevent Identity Theft, Official Says
Dec 28 2006 // Beginning Monday, Jan. 1, Illinois consumers will have access to a new tool to stop identity thieves from opening new credit in their names. The new law will allow all Illinois residents to place a “security...
Ex-Md. Lawmaker Facing Charges Steps Down from Workers’ Comp Fund
Dec 28 2006 // Former Maryland state Sen. Thomas Bromwell has agreed to step down at the end of the year as head of the Injured Workers’ Insurance Fund under a separation agreement announced by the organization’s board of...
Former La. Insurance Agent Arrested on Fraud Charges
Dec 28 2006 // A former Oakdale, La., insurance agent was arrested and issued a cease and desist order on charges of fraud and misappropriation of funds, Louisiana Commissioner of Insurance Jim Donelon announced recently. John Craig...
MySpace Users Tempting Targets for Identity Theft
Dec 27 2006 // MySpace devotee Kary Rogers was expecting to see a gut-busting video when a friend from the popular online hangout messaged him a link. First, though, he was directed to a page where he was supposed to re-enter his...
