| TRENTON
– Attorney General Stuart Rabner and
Division of Criminal Justice Director Gregory
A. Paw announced that a Wildwood man was
indicted today by a Cape May County grand
jury for allegedly committing health care
claims fraud.
According to Insurance Fraud
Prosecutor Greta Gooden Brown, Joseph Venziano,
66, of Wildwood, was charged with second-degree
health care claims fraud, third-degree theft
by deception and fourth-degree falsifying
or tampering with records.
The indictment alleges that
between October 18, 2002 and December 30,
2003, Venziano falsely represented that
he remained married to his former wife so
that she would be eligible as a dependant
spouse for health insurance benefits. Health
insurance benefits were provided through
Venziano’s employer by the Aetna Life
Insurance Company, and the policy provided
that those benefits would end if the marriage
ended. Venziano was divorced in 1998, but
Aetna allegedly paid $9,393 to various health
care providers for services rendered to
the former wife during the period in question.
The indictment is merely
an accusation and the defendant is presumed
innocent until proven guilty. Second-degree
crimes carry a maximum punishment of 10
years in state prison and a criminal fine
of $150,000; third-degree crimes carry a
maximum punishment of five years in state
prison and a criminal fine of $15,000; and
fourth-degree crimes carry a maximum punishment
of 18 months in state prison and a criminal
fine of $10,000.
State Investigator Janessa
Jones and Deputy Attorney General Peter
W. Lee are handling the case.
“People who intentionally misrepresent
their marital status to obtain insurance
benefits face more than a denial of benefits
if they are discovered; they can be charged
with a crime,” said Insurance Fraud
Prosecutor Brown. “Unfortunately,
this type of conduct is far too common.”
Prosecutor
Brown noted that some important cases have
started with anonymous tips. People who
are concerned about insurance cheating and
have information about a fraud can report
it
anonymously by calling the toll-free hotline
1-877-55-FRAUD or visiting the
Web at www.NJInsuranceFraud.org.
State regulations permit an award to be
paid to an eligible person who provides
information that leads to an arrest, prosecution
and conviction for insurance fraud.
The Office of Insurance
Fraud Prosecutor was established by the
Automobile Insurance Cost Reduction Act
of 1998. The office is the centralized state
agency that investigates and prosecutes
both civil and criminal insurance fraud,
as well as Medicaid fraud.
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