Baton Rouge, La., Man Arrested in Business Auto Insurance Scam

Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr., reported that special agents from his office, in a joint effort with members of the fraud section of the Louisiana Department of Insurance, arrested Walter Glenn McMillan, Jr., 4705 Shadeland Drive, Baton Rouge, for his alleged involvement in a car insurance scam.

The AG’s special agents allege that McMillan sold commercial auto insurance policies to local Baton Rouge businesses and supplied them with insurance identification cards that appeared to be valid for at least six months. McMillan allegedly failed to remit the consumers premiums to the appropriate insurance carrier. As a result, consumers believed they carried auto insurance when in reality they did not.

McMillan surrendered to special agents on Feb. 16, 2006. He is charged with violating the following statutes:

LRS 14:67—Theft by Fraud, Valued at $15,000
LRS 22:1142—Failure to Remit Premiums for Insurance Coverage—1 count
LRS 22:1142(A)—Misrepresentation or Dishonest Insurance Agent Practices—3 counts
LRS 22:1243(A)—Deceptive Practices towards the Department of Insurance—3 counts
LRS 22:1214-13—Providing Fraudulent Insurance Documentation—3 counts
LRS 22:1148D—Failure to being a Licensed Insurance Producer—1 count

The charge of Theft by Fraud carries a possible sentence of imprisonment, with or without hard labor, for not more than ten years, or fined not more than $3,000, or both.

If convicted on the charge of Failure to Remit Premiums for Insurance Coverage, the commissioner of insurance may place on probation, suspend, revoke or refuse to issue, renew, or reinstate an insurance producer license, or may levy a fine not to exceed $500 for each violation occurring, up to $10,000 aggregate for all violations in a calendar year.

The charge of Deceptive Practices towards the Department of Insurance carries a possible sentence of imprisonment, with or without hard labor, not to exceed five years, or a fine not to exceed $5,000 or both, on each count.

The charge of Failure to Being a Licensed Insurance Producer carries a possible sentence of imprisonment with or without hard labor not to exceed five years, on each count, and each day on which a violation occurs shall be considered a separate violation.

In addition to the above charges, McMillan was also served with a Cease and Desist Summary Order, issued by the Louisiana Department of Insurance. This order suspends McMillan’s business practices until the matter can be heard before a court.

Anyone with information on Walter Glenn McMillan, Jr., or consider themselves a victim of this scam, is asked to contact the Attorney General’s Office at (800) 256-4506.