Two Texas men should have done the math.
Arson plus insurance money equals time in jail.
Blaise Hancock, of Arlington, and Clint Allen, of Lewisville were sentenced to 79 months and 51 months in federal prison, respectively, for conspiring to file an insurance claim on a house fire that Allen had deliberately set.
In addition, the two were ordered to pay, jointly and severally, nearly $300,000 in restitution and Allen was ordered to forfeit nearly $250,000. They are to surrender the Bureau of Prisons on Jan. 3, 2012.
Both Hancock and Allen pleaded guilty in August to conspiracy to commit mail fraud.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office Hancock, 43, purchased a Dallas residence in July 1, 2007, using $50,000 that Allen had given him to purchase the property. Later that month, Hancock acquired insurance from SAFECO Insurance Co. in the amount of $811,000 for the property, $86,000 for other structures, $516,600 for personal property and $172,200 for additional living expenses.
On Dec. 2, 2007, Allen, 50, started a fire that damaged and destroyed the dwelling and its contents. Prior to the fire, to establish an alibi, Allen sent his cell phone to his father in Pineville, La. Allen also had someone pose as him and use his credit card to check into a Pineville motel.
Hancock went out of town to establish an alibi as well. He traveled to San Antonio on Dec. 1 and returned on Dec. 3, the day after the fire. That day, Hancock reported the fire to SAFECO.
In the following months both men submitted various fraudulent claims, including receipts, inventory, a sworn statement for proof of loss and a proof of loss form in the amount of nearly $1.2 million.
To further facilitate the fraud, Allen even created a company, Restoration Services, and submitted nearly $9,000 in invoices to SAFECO in support of their claim.
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