The eighth and final defendant involved in an elaborate auto insurance fraud ring has been sentenced. The ring spanned four years and netted those arrested more than $100,000 in phony insurance payments from staged auto accidents.
North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin reported that Cory Timothy Jett, 35, a Greenville, N.C resident, pled guilty to one count of attempting to obtain property by false pretense. Jett received suspended jail time, 24 months parole, and an order to pay nearly $2,000 in restitution to Progressive Insurance.
According to the investigation, the defendants allegedly posed as drivers and passengers in salvage cars often bought out-of-state by the assumed ringleader, Rayon Lamont Artis. After each staged accident, the defendants submitted false medical and vehicle damage insurance claims. It was GMAC Insurance that tipped off department investigators as to the fraud ring.
Artis, 32, also of Greenville, pled guilty to multiple counts of obtaining property by false pretense, attempting to obtain property by false pretense, and conspiracy to obtain property by false pretense. He was sentenced to 32 to 36 months in prison and 48 months probation. Six other defendants also pleaded guilty and received jail time, probation, or orders to pay restitution.
The N.C. Attorney General’s Special Prosecutions Section and Special Deputy Attorney General Mary Winstead, the Lenoir and Pitt County District Attorney's offices, the Lenoir and Pitt County Sherriff's Offices, and the Greenville City Police Department were all involved in the investigation and prosecution.
The North Carolina Department of Insurance (NCDOI) employs 20 sworn law enforcement officers dedicated to investigating claims of insurance fraud. So far in 2009, more than 241 cases have been successfully closed, with more than $9.7 million in restitution and recoveries; 67 criminal convictions; and 123 arrests and 92 cases pending in court.
Source: www.ncdoi.com