Butte County authorities have cracked the backs of a couple chiropractors running their business like a Chico keg party where anything goes. Chiropractors Terry Gibson and Linda Powers were targeted in a yearlong sting operation after a patient tipped off authorities. Undercover operatives posed as injured patients with workers’ compensation claims. During the investigation the... Read More
The California Department of Insurance Criminal Investigations Branch’s Fraud Division has been busy in the greater Sacramento region this month. Videotape has been the secret weapon that has taken two workers’ compensation fraud cases down. Shawn Jay Thomas, a 34-year-old from Cameron Park was booked on insurance fraud and perjury June 10. Through video surveillance,... Read More
Darlene Berdeaux, 42, could face up to five years in prison and a $50,000 fine after pleading guilty, April 10, to workers’ compensation fraud. Berdeaux burnt her hand in 1997 while working as a waitress at Seaside Park. At the time, she was given a Demerol shot in her right hip. She has since complained... Read More
A ten-year veteran of the claims examining community has been caught “adjusting” some claims to earn herself a supplemental income. Candace A. England, of Oakland, was arrested Feb. 26 on nine counts of insurance fraud. The 31-year-old worked for State Farm since 1992 and admitted to California Department of Insurance investigators that she had filed... Read More
Six Months in Jail for City Worker Caught on Tape Committing Fraud
Michael Randolph, 33, was sentenced to six months in jail and five years of probation Feb. 6, after pleading guilty to insurance fraud. The Simi Valley man was a gardener for the City of Los Angeles when he claims he fell off a truck and hurt his back and shoulder in 1996. In 1998, Randolph... Read More
From Police Academy to Prison Cell: Trainee Jailed for Workers’ Comp Fraud
An Oxnard man will serve three years in a California prison for his conviction on 14 counts of workers’ compensation insurance fraud. Jeffrey Rene Pilon, 41, was sentenced, Jan. 9, in Ventura County Superior Court. Pilon worked as a private security guard for Mission Security and Patrol in Santa Barbara, CA. After he was fired... Read More
California Department of Insurance (DOI) criminal investigators arrested Nasratullah Mohammad, of Canoga Park, Jan. 9, for grand theft and insurance fraud. Mohammad filed a 1996 workers’ compensation claim for back injuries he suffered while lifting and stocking merchandise at a 7-11 convenience store. Great American Insurance Company accepted the claim and proceeded to pay Mohammad... Read More
California Public Insurance Adjuster Accused Of Accepting Kickbacks
A Sacramento man could lose his license as a public insurance adjuster for allegedly accepting more than $66,000 in kickbacks from a contractor. Earlier this month, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) Criminal Investigation Branch filed the “Accusation” with the intent to revoke the license of Troy Cross. CDI’s investigation alleges that Cross, the owner... Read More
