Feds arrest 22 in staged-accident insurance scam

by PegNews wire

DALLAS — Federal, state and local law enforcement officers arrested 19 out of 22 defendants yesterday who are charged in a federal indictment with participating in a massive staged-accident scheme, announced U.S. Attorney Richard B. Roper of the Northern District of Texas. The 71-count indictment was returned by a federal grand jury last week and unsealed on Wednesday.

Those arrested are all residents of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex area, with the exception of two defendants, as noted:

Tuan (Andy) Nguyen, 31, Dorina Buriman, 30, Gabriel Buriman, 30, Benjamin Covaci, 26, Daniel Covaci, 28, Jose Manuel Herrera, 36, Jesus Huerta, 31, Tinh Tim Ngo, 34, To Xuan Ngo, 34, Anh Linh Nguyen, 34, of Memphis, Tennessee, Cindy Tu Nguyen, 33, of Memphis, Tennessee, Joe Ngoc Nguyen, 59, Jackson Nguyen, 62, Toan Ngoc Nguyen, 32, Clement Oancea, 61, Tereza Oancea, 57, Daniel Pascu, 37, Nona Magdalena Taut, 28, Ovidiu Taut, 28, Tay Ngoc Tran, 40, Nhat Huy Tran, 40, and Phuong Thi Truong, 27.

The indictment alleges that since January 2000, these defendants, who live in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex area, participated in the staging of automobile accidents, recruitment of other individuals to participate in staged accidents, and the submissions of false and fraudulent insurance claims for injuries and damages allegedly caused by the accidents. They also directed other participants to certain medical clinics for treatment and to certain law firms to file fraudulent insurance claims.

Lead defendant Tuan (Andy) Nguyen is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, 41 counts of mail fraud and aiding and abetting, one count of conspiracy to launder money, and 25 counts of money laundering and aiding and abetting. The indictment charges all 22 defendants with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and health care fraud. All but one of the defendants is charged with at least one count of mail fraud. Fourteen defendants are also charged with conspiracy to launder money and all 14 are charged with at least one count of money laundering.

The scheme involved staging multiple motor vehicle accidents schemes to fraudulently depict either the collision of two previously damaged vehicles, or to intentionally cause the planned collision of two vehicles. Fraudulent claims were filed with the insurance companies by the insured, or by a law firm retained to represent the insured. These claims included fraudulent bills for the damage incurred by the vehicles in the staged accidents and claims for injuries that never occurred, or were negligible but medical bills had been created by willing chiropractors for the specific purpose of inflating the number of treatments and the severity of the injuries. As a result of the fraud, numerous insurance companies paid the perpetrators hundreds of thousands of dollars based on fraudulent claims.

The indictment specifically refers to 20 staged accidents occurring from June 22, 2002 to January 18, 2006. As a result of the conspiracy and scheme to defraud, the co-conspirators defrauded victim insurance companies of more than $1 million.

Source: Department of Justice