Authorities have arrested two Pitt County, North Carolina women in connection with bogus medical claims stemming from two automobile accidents.
According to the office of North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin, mother-and-daughter duo Rebecca Cherry Stilley, 39, and Jacqueline Leigh Cherry, 19, were taken into custody and each charged with one count of insurance fraud, obtaining property by false pretense, attempting to obtain property by false pretense, and two counts of conspiracy.
Investigators believe that in March and June of this year Cherry and Stilley conspired with one another to score some quick cash. They allegedly altered medical bills, which they then submitted to Farm Bureau Insurance Company for reimbursement. As a result of the phony claims, the insurer awarded them $1,264.
Cherry claimed to have received medical treatment for injuries resulting from two automobile accidents. However, a subsequent review of the documents given to the insurer revealed that she never received any sort of treatment from the medical facility on the dates stipulated on the bill.
The Pitt County Detention Center processed the women, placing both under a $20,000 secured bond.
The Department of Insurance employs 20 sworn law enforcement officers dedicated to investigating claims of insurance fraud. To date, these criminal investigators have seen more than 165 cases successfully closed, with more than $5.8 million in restitution and recoveries; 40 criminal convictions; and more than 65 arrests.
Source: www.ncdoi.com.
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