___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ October 2018 60 Charged in Fall Insurance Fraud Sweep October 2017. On November 13, Harper allegedly filed a claim indicating that 18 items were stolen from his vehicle. Harper • On October 9, 2018, allegedly provided Mark Folino was Allstate with fraudulent arrested in Lawrence receipts for mink coats County. According to and jackets the criminal complaint, purportedly valued at on March 13, 2018, at more than $43,000. approximately 12:49 Investigators spoke to the owner of the men’s PM, Folino rear-ended a store listed on the receipts. The owner State Farm insured allegedly advised that his store did not issue vehicle which was the receipts and did not sell coats at such high- attempting to make a end prices. Allstate denied the claim. Harper left hand turn into a was charged with one count of Insurance Fraud driveway. The complaint stated that when the (F3), one count of Theft by Deception (F3), one accident occurred, Folino was listed as an count of Forgery (F3) and one count of excluded driver on the Progressive Criminal Use of a Communication Facility (F3). Insurance vehicle policy shared by Folino and his wife. Approximately one hour after the • On October 25, 2018, accident, Folino’s wife allegedly added him to Kennesha Watson the policy as a covered driver. Folino allegedly was arrested in contacted Progressive later that day and filed Montgomery County. a claim for the accident, stating that the crash According to the occurred after he was added to the policy as a criminal complaint, on covered driver. However, the complaint stated September 20, 2017, that investigators reviewed the Pennsylvania Watson’s uninsured State Police incident report which confirmed vehicle was involved that the loss occurred prior to the policy in an accident. On the change. Folino was charged with one count of following day, Watson Insurance Fraud (F3) and one count of Criminal allegedly obtained a Attempt/Theft by Deception (F3). new vehicle policy from Progressive Insurance. According to the complaint, • On October 29, 2018, Jermond Harper was Watson contacted Progressive on September arrested in Philadelphia County. According to 25 and claimed that she had been in an the criminal complaint, Harper obtained a accident which occurred at approximately 11 renter’s policy from Allstate Insurance in ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ INSURANCE FRAUD SECTION NEWSLETTER 1 ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ PM on September 24. However, a police crash allegedly told the report allegedly revealed that the accident insurer that he had occurred before Watson obtained coverage. parked the vehicle in According to the complaint, Watson admitted the hotel parking lot, to investigators that she made false then took a bus to statements to Progressive about the date of New York City. the loss. Progressive denied the claim. Watson According to the was charged with one count of Insurance Fraud complaint, Debona (F3), one count of Criminal Attempt/Theft by claimed that upon his Deception (F3) and one count of Criminal Use return he discovered of a Communication Facility (F3). that his vehicle was gone. However, • On October 15, 2018, investigators learned that the vehicle allegedly Felipe Lithgow was had been repossessed on February 8 and arrested in Bucks moved to a storage lot. Debona was charged County. According to with one count of Insurance Fraud (F3), one the criminal count of Criminal Attempt/Theft by Deception complaint, on (F3), one count of Criminal Use of a November 2, 2017, Communication Facility (F3) and one count of Lithgow obtained a False Reports to Law Enforcement (M2). vehicle policy from GEICO. On • On October 24, 2018, November 8, Lithgow Jakob Gucu was allegedly submitted a arrested in Luzerne claim to the insurer for flood damage to his County. According to vehicle. The damage purportedly occurred on the criminal November 7, while the vehicle was parked at a complaint, Gucu friend’s apartment complex. However, called Safe Auto on according to the complaint, an employee and June 26, 2016, and residents of the apartment complex told filed a claim for deer investigators that the flooding occurred on strike damage to his October 29, four days before Lithgow obtained Lincoln Navigator. his policy. Investigators allegedly corroborated Gucu allegedly told the witness statements by reviewing historical the insurer that the loss occurred that evening. weather data. According to the complaint, the However, according to the criminal complaint, data revealed that significant rain fell in the Safe Auto records revealed that Gucu area on October 28 and 29, but no rain fell on previously called the insurer on June 13 and November 7. When confronted with this reported that his wife struck a deer while information, Lithgow allegedly admitted to driving the Lincoln. The Safe Auto investigators that he obtained coverage after representative told Gucu at the time that the his vehicle was damaged. Lithgow withdrew Lincoln was not listed on Gucu’s policy. Gucu the claim. Lithgow was charged with one count allegedly called the insurer the following of Insurance Fraud (F3), one count of Criminal morning and added the Lincoln to his Attempt/Theft by Deception (F3) and one coverage. The case was referred to a Safe Auto count of Unlawful Use of a Computer (F3). investigator, who contacted Gucu by phone on July 5. According to the complaint, the • On October 25, 2018, Joseph Debona was investigator asked Gucu about his June 13th arrested in Montgomery County. According to deer strike call. Gucu allegedly maintained that the criminal complaint, On March 3, 2018, he had called only to verify his coverage. The Debona submitted a claim to Progressive complaint further stated that the investigator Insurance in which he allegedly reported that called Gucu back and played a portion of the his insured vehicle had been stolen from the June 13th recording for him. After listening to Double Tree Hotel parking lot sometime the recording, Gucu allegedly told the between February 23 and March 2. Debona investigator that the Lincoln should have been ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ INSURANCE FRAUD SECTION NEWSLETTER 2 ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ on the policy at that time and insisted that he and allegedly reported that the Jeep had been had added it on May 31. Safe Auto allegedly struck and damaged while parked. The determined that the deer strike occurred complaint further stated that between before the Lincoln was covered by the policy. November 30, 2016 and April 27, 2017, Garvin The claim was denied. Gucu was charged with told Progressive representatives that the Jeep one count of Insurance Fraud (F3) and one was parked by a friend’s house at the time of count of Criminal Attempt/Theft by Deception loss. Due to alleged inconsistences in Garvin’s (F3). statements, Progressive hired an accredited accident reconstructionist to review the claim. • On October 25, 2018, According to the complaint, the expert Alexandra Garr was concluded that Garvin’s description of the arrested in Jeep’s damage was inconsistent with the type Montgomery County. of damage that occurs under those According to the circumstances. When she was confronted with criminal complaint, the expert’s findings, Garvin allegedly Garr had been driving admitted that she had fabricated the facts of her uninsured vehicle the accident at her friend’s direction. According on June 18, 2018, to the complaint, Garvin admitted that she when it was involved never possessed the Jeep. On April 28, 2017, in an accident at Garvin withdrew her claim. Garvin was charged approximately 5:06 with one count of Insurance Fraud (F3), one PM. Garr allegedly reinstated her lapsed count of Criminal Attempt/Theft by Deception Progressive Insurance automobile coverage (F3), one count of Criminal Use of a at 5:34 PM. During the reinstatement process, Communication Facility (F3) and one count of Garr allegedly told the insurer that she had not Criminal Conspiracy (F3). been involved in any accidents during the lapse in coverage. According to the complaint, Garr • On October 9, contacted Progressive again at 10 PM and filed 2018, Malinda an accident claim. The complaint further stated Stoner was that on June 20, Garr told a Progressive arrested in Fayette representative that the accident occurred after County. According Garr had reinstated her coverage. However, to the criminal witnesses allegedly confirmed that the complaint, Stoner’s accident occurred earlier, when the vehicle was Progressive uninsured. Garr was charged with one count of Insurance policy Insurance Fraud (F3), one count of Criminal canceled for non- Attempt/Theft by Deception (F3), one count of payment in Criminal Use of a Communication Facility (F3) January, 2018. She and one count of Insurance Fraud (M1). obtained a new policy from the insurer on June 8, 2018 at 2:14 • On October 23, PM. The complaint further stated that during 2018, Shante Garvin the application process, Stoner claimed that was arrested in the vehicle had not been involved in