Insurance agent Tom Fallon, 63, was arraigned July 24 in Superior Court in Long Beach, Calif., on multiple felony charges including theft by embezzlement and money laundering.
Fallon's daughter, Christina Fallon, 28, is scheduled to surrender herself at the Long Beach Police Department on July 24, and is facing the same felony charges.
According to investigators with the California Department of Insurance Investigation Division, Fallon and his daughter allegedly embezzled $273,954 for their personal use from injured workers who trusted them to invest settlement funds from workplace accidents with his company, Fortis Financial Insurance Services Inc.
Related: How you can combat insurance agent fraud
Evidence revealed Tom suggested two victims deposit their accident settlement funds with him in what's known as a workers' compensation set-aside arrangement, which would provide investment management for their settlement. In December 2014, the victims received an interest payment check from Tom Fallon that bounced for nonsufficient funds, which raised their suspicions that something was wrong, ultimately leading to a criminal investigation into the Fallon family.
"The Fallons' alleged theft from injured workers is particularly egregious," said Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. "By stealing from injured workers who depend on the funds for future care, the Fallons may have left many victims without the resources they need for medical treatment."
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.