Mapquest Printout Leads to N.Y. Insurance Fraud Sentencing

According to the MA Assocation of Independent Agents, for every $10 consumers pay in insurance premiums, $3 goes toward paying fraudulent claims. - The Howes Insurance Agency

A 36-year-old Rochester, N.Y. man, whose Mapquest directions led police to his home, was sentenced to five years probation in Monroe County Court on Nov. 26 for trying to fraudulently obtain a $10,282 insurance settlement.

Craig C. Wilson, of 24 Alfie Dr., was sentenced by Rochester City Court Judge Thomas Rainbow Morse. Wilson pleaded guilty to insurance fraud on Sept. 17, admitting he falsely reported that his sports utility vehicle had been stolen so he could collect on an insurance claim.

Wilson was arrested by Rochester Police after authorities recovered his 2002 Mercury Mountaineer in the parking lot of a Jacksonville, Fla., apartment complex two months after he had reported it stolen. The SUV was discovered when the apartment complex owner complained to local police about the abandoned vehicle.

Investigators said Mapquest directions from Wilson's home to the Jacksonville site printed nine days before the reported theft were found inside the vehicle. They said the vehicle also contained paperwork describing airline transportation from Jacksonville to Rochester. Wilson reportedly has acquaintances in Jacksonville.

Authorities said Wilson confessed to filing the fraudulent insurance claim when he was confronted with the evidence.

The investigation was conducted by Gary S. Sullivan of the Frauds Bureau of the New York State Insurance Department and the Auto Theft Unit of the Rochester Police Department. Geico Insurance Co. assisted in the investigation.

Assistant Monroe County District Attorney Casey Spencer prosecuted the case.

Source: New York State Insurance Department