Four people, including three from North Jersey, have been indicted over a travel insurance scheme, authorities announced.
Agustin Matos, 40, of North Haledon; Keyra Carla Liriano, 45, and Patricio Arturo Alfonso, 46, both of Fort Lee; and Kenia Ivonne Vasquez, 44, of Bronx, New York have been charged with conspiracy, insurance fraud, attempted theft by deception, impersonation/theft of identity and falsifying/tampering with records, the Attorney General’s office announced. Liriano was also charged with theft by deception.
A state grand jury returned an indictment against the group last month.
“The defendants in this case are charged with coming up with a simple − yet potentially lucrative − scam by taking out multiple travel insurance policies and then filing claims against them for trips they never actually took and for medical emergencies they allegedly fabricated,” said Attorney General Matthews Platkin in a release.
The defendents conducted the scheme from April 2022 to August 2023 in Bergen, Hudson and Passaic counties, New York, and elsewhere, according to the AG. In all, the four attempted to defaud the insurance companies of just over $250,000. While most of the fraudulent claims were denied, Liriano obtained $14,835 in claim payments from two carriers, officials said.
“Insurance exists for various reasons, and enriching yourself illegally is not one of them,” said Division of Criminal Justice Director Theresa L. Hilton. “Travel insurance allows people on vacation or business trips to know they are covered for health care in the event of an unforeseen emergency. The defendants we’re charging in this scheme tried to turn it into an illegal business.”
The Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor investigated this case on a referrel from the Special Investigation Unit of American International Group Inc.
Four indicted over North Jersey travel insurance scheme
