|
TRENTON - Attorney General
Anne Milgram and Criminal Justice Director
Deborah L. Gramiccioni announced that a Camden
City police officer pleaded guilty today to
insurance fraud for defrauding New Jersey
Manufacturers.
According to Insurance Fraud
Prosecutor Greta Gooden Brown, Darryl Miller,
42, of Sicklerville, a 22-year veteran of
the Camden Police Department, pleaded guilty
before Superior Court Judge William J. Cook
in Camden County to third-degree insurance
fraud, a charge contained in a Nov. 16, 2007
state grand jury indictment. As a result of
the indictment, Miller was suspended from
his position without pay.
At the guilty plea hearing, Miller admitted
that between Dec. 1, 2002 and Dec. 31, 2005,
he defrauded New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance
Company by falsifying application and renewal
forms for auto insurance policies.
In addition to being a police
officer, Miller was a co-owner and operator
of MJ Transportation Company LLC, a non-emergency
medical transportation business that transported
patients from home to doctors' offices and
other places for diagnostic testing and medical
treatments. The Camden County Board of Social
Services utilized MJ Transportation to transport
patients to and from medical treatments.
Miller illegally obtained
required insurance on the vans operated by
MJ Transportation at a substantially lower
cost by falsely claiming that the vans were
not being used in a commercial enterprise.
Motor vehicle registration forms filed with
the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission falsely
indicated that the vans were only used for
personal transportation. Miller made such
misrepresentations concerning at least four
transportation vans that were used commercially
by MJ Transportation Company. As a result
of the fraud, Miller saved approximately $9,000
per vehicle per year.
One of the vans was involved
in a fatal accident in 2004. Due to the alleged
fraud, the victim's family was denied compensation,
because the van was not properly insured.
The matter is currently in litigation.
At the time of sentencing,
the charges against Miller’s co-defendant,
Fred Jefferson, will be dropped. Jefferson
was the co-owner of MJ Transportation.
Detective George Meyers Jr., Civil Investigator
Patricia Barry, and Deputy Attorney General
Susan Kase were assigned to the investigation.
Deputy Attorney General Kase represented the
Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor at the
guilty plea hearing.
Judge Cook scheduled sentencing
for March 6. Under the plea agreement, the
state will recommend a probationary sentence.
“It is particularly
disturbing when a police officer participates
in an insurance fraud scheme,” said
Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Brown. “Rather
than upholding the law, as he was sworn to
do, this officer broke the law, putting others
at risk.”
This case was referred to
OIFP by the Special Investigative Unit of
New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance Company
which initially uncovered the fraud and assisted
OIFP in the investigation. Prosecutor Brown
thanked NJM for its assistance.
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 site 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.
#
# #
|
