Dallas-Area Staged Accidents Scam Leads to Guilty Plea

A Dallas-area man has pleaded guilty to fraud in staged traffic accident schemes worth $5 million that have been going on since 2005.

Prosecutors in Dallas say 61-year-old Leroy Nelson of DeSoto pleaded guilty to mail fraud and to engaging in illegal monetary transactions. Nelson faces up to 30 years in prison and could be required to make restitution when he’s sentenced this summer.

Investigators say drivers made false insurance claims in return for cash payments. Nelson, who pleaded guilty on March 18, would also submit damage claims for elaborate, technical equipment that he made up – such as a “remote aircraft landing marker.”

Nelson opened private mailboxes in Minnesota, Missouri, Washington, Arizona, Connecticut and Louisiana to get insurance checks, then had the mail forwarded to him in Texas.