North Carolina Man Charged With Threatening Insurance Agents Over Claim

First, a North Carolina man filed a claim with Farm Bureau Insurance. Then he threatened three insurance agents with violence when he wasn’t paid as much as he expected, according to state authorities and one of the insurance agents.

Brody Alan Hankinson, 48, of Marion, North Carolina, was charged with extortion after threatening the agents on July 5 and July 11, state Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey said in a statement.

“Thanks to our agents and the other law enforcement agencies involved in this case,” Commissioner Causey said. “I know the public will feel safer knowing that someone capable of communicating dangerous intents is behind bars.”

Farm Bureau and state investigators have said that the man’s insurance claims may be fraudulent, Causey said. One of the insurance agents said Thursday that Hankinson had made the threats over the telephone. He had actually been paid on a claim but was still upset, said Farm Bureau agent Dwayne Ellis, of Marion.

Ellis said he had never experienced threats from a policyholder. “It wasn’t fun,” he said.

Hankinson is now in jail. He had already been arrested in Jacksonville, Florida, on unrelated burglary and criminal mischief charges when authorities began searching for him on the extortion charges.

Hankinson was arrested by the Neptune Beach Police Department on July 12 and is awaiting a court date on three incidents, the Duval County Sheriff’s Office indicated. An extradition hold has been placed on Hankinson for the outstanding charges in North Carolina.

Hankinson is listed at 6-foot, 2-inches tall and 210 pounds.

Further information about his alleged extortion action was not available.