Pool Company Owners Indicted for Fraud
SEPTEMBER 25, 2001—A Travis County grand jury indicted Roger B. Haverkamp, Monica Haverkamp, and H & H Pool Decks, Inc, of Keller, Texas. Mr. and Mrs. Haverkamp and the corporation were indicted for the first-degree felony offense of “securing execution of document by deception.”
The indictment followed a joint investigation by the Travis County District Attorney office and Texas Mutual Insurance Company. They initiated the investigation after receiving a referral from Brandi Peña, a senior premium auditor with Texas Mutual Insurance Company. The indictment alleges the Haverkamps were involved in a scheme of workers’ compensation premium fraud. Based upon misrepresentations made to the insurance company, the parties allegedly defrauded Texas Mutual Insurance Company of approximately $688,796 in workers’ compensation insurance premiums.
The investigation was part of a special arrangement between the Travis County District Attorney and Texas Mutual Insurance Company. Assistant District Attorney Donna Crosby handled the prosecution in this case.
Note: A grand jury indictment is a formal accusation--not a conviction--of criminal conduct.
Therapist Indicted for Workers' Comp Fraud
SEPTEMBER 13, 2001—Catherine Delaney, a Ph.D. therapist from Houston, is facing state jail felony charges following a Travis County grand jury indictment on August 22. The indictment alleges that Delaney committed insurance fraud by collecting workers’ compensation income benefits while simultaneously working for the Alief Independent School District and while earning money as a self-employed therapist.
The indictment followed a joint investigation by the Travis County District Attorney office and Texas Mutual Insurance Company (formerly the Texas Workers’ Compensation Insurance Fund).
Note: A grand jury indictment is a formal accusation--not a conviction--of criminal conduct.
Rockport Employer Arrested for Claim Fraud
SEPTEMBER 10, 2001—The Rockport Police Department arrested Cleve Wesley Purdy today on insurance fraud-related felony charges. Purdy, owner of a local oil and gas gauging company, allegedly committed insurance fraud by filing claims on his workers’ compensation policy for employees that were not his.
The indictment followed a joint investigation by the Travis County District Attorney office and Texas Mutual Insurance Company (formerly the Texas Workers’ Compensation Insurance Fund). Purdy allegedly defrauded the insurance company of approximately $8,000; however, according to Texas MutualSM sources, the claims would have totaled in excess of $1 million dollars if left unchecked.
The Purdy investigation was part of the company’s “Zero Tolerance for Fraud” program. Texas Mutual Insurance Company maintains three teams of investigators permanently assigned to investigate every report of suspected fraud.
Cab Company Employees Fare Poorly in Court
SEPTEMBER 7, 2001—Be careful what you wish for; you just may get it. That’s what someone should have said to Abullah Abdulle and Aftab Qureshi before they got involved in a scheme to rip-off a workers’ compensation insurance company.
Two years ago, the two Golden Cab Company employees heard about a deal between some health care providers and a “broker” of phony workers’ compensation claims. As they understood it, the broker had bribed an insurance adjustor to pay for nonexistent treatments for nonexistent injured workers. Abdulle, a Golden Cab supervisor, and Qureshi, the company’s insurance manager, said they could refer more providers to the broker in exchange for a piece of the action.
Last month, they got their piece of the action—in a U.S. District Court.
Abdulle and Qureshi are just the latest in a series of convictions resulting from Operation Darkmed, the two-year undercover sting conducted jointly by Texas Mutual Insurance Company (formerly the Texas Workers’ Compensation Insurance Fund) and the FBI.
Thanks to this innovative investigation, the courts have convicted 10 people, including six chiropractors and a physical therapist, on insurance fraud-related charges. The other individual convicted in the scheme was a senior vice president at the Associated Medical Providers of Dallas.
Abdulle pleaded guilty to health care fraud and aiding and abetting. He received a three-year probation and a $2,500 fine, and faces possible deportation proceedings.
Qureshi pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and health care fraud. He received a 15-month prison sentence and a two-year probation after release. Additionally, Qureshi must pay $33,098.98 in restitution.
Texas Mutual Insurance Company paid approximately $1 million related to the fraudulent claims. The FBI reimbursed the company with federal money that had been allocated to fund the operation.
Texas Fund Becomes Texas Mutual
SEPTEMBER 1, 2001—Today, the Texas Workers’ Compensation Insurance Fund officially became Texas Mutual Insurance Company. The change takes place 10 years after the Legislature first chartered the company to help stabilize the workers’ compensation system in Texas.
Since its inception in 1991, the company has been a competitive force in the marketplace by guaranteeing the availability of workers’ compensation insurance in Texas and acting as the state’s insurer of last resort. When the Legislature revised the company charter earlier this year, it included provisions for Texas Mutual Insurance Company to continue its highly successful fraud fighting and loss prevention programs.
“Our operational philosophy and customer service orientation absolutely will not change,” said company President Russell Oliver. “We will continue to strive to be the model provider of workers’ compensation.”
Except for the name change itself, the only other visible difference at the company will be its Web address. For more information about Texas Mutual Insurance Company, go to www.texasmutual.com.