Fourteen Charged In Upstate Workers' Compensation Sweep

Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, Inspector General Dineen Riviezzo, Insurance Superintendent Howard Mills, Insurance Fund Executive Director David P. Whener, and Workers’ Compensation Board Fraud Inspector General John H. Burgher, Jr., today announced the arrests and arraignments of 14 individuals for insurance fraud and related charges following a joint investigation into workers’ compensation fraud. The cases were brought in Albany, Broome, Dutchess, Erie and Herkimer counties.

The defendants were all charged with submitting fraudulent claims to obtain workers’ compensation benefits. Typical misrepresentations involved failing to disclose present or past work status or the cause of injury. One defendant, Harold Higgins, allegedly collected over $100,000 while concealing his employment in the elective post of Assessor for the Town of Copake in Columbia County. The total benefits paid to all 14 defendants by insurance carriers, including the New York State Insurance Fund (NYSIF), exceeded $250,000.

"Every worker deserves the right to be compensated for medical expenses and lost wages that result from injuries sustained while working," Spitzer said. "However, workers who misrepresent their employment status in order to collect workers' compensation benefits, no matter how large or small the amount, ultimately increase the costs of doing business in New York."

Inspector General Dineen Riviezzo said: "Those who commit workers’ compensation fraud are stealing benefits intended for truly deserving workers. It's an even worse affront when, as in the case investigated by my office, the alleged perpetrator of the fraud is an employee of state government." Read more at oag.state.ny.us