Nebraska Man Charged with Stealing Over $800,000 in Insurance Fraud Scheme

A Lincoln man, Jeffrey Smith, 56, faces serious charges after allegedly embezzling nearly $850,000 from American Heritage Life Insurance Company, where he served as a claims examiner. The case unfolded when the Insurance Fraud Prevention Division of the Nebraska Department of Insurance was alerted to possible fraudulent activities by Smith on November 13, 2023. Investigators discovered that Smith had been submitting false claims, resulting in a payout of $885,230 to his accounts, without any documentation to support the medical services he claimed.

Smith’s suspicious activities came to light during an internal audit triggered by a specific claim he processed in 2023. It was revealed that Smith had filed 52 fraudulent claims between April 11, 2023, and November 6, 2023, amassing a total of $830,895. He initially claimed that the fraud was a desperate attempt to secure ransom money for a friend kidnapped in Brazil, with a significant portion of the funds allegedly transferred to a kidnapper named Pablo. However, Smith also admitted to investing about $500,000 of the ill-gotten gains in a "big project" with another associate.

Following the investigation, a warrant was issued for Smith’s arrest, leading to his capture and a court appearance where a Lancaster County judge set his bond at $1,000,000 (10% required) and mandated the surrender of his passport. Smith is expected to return to court on March 13 for further proceedings on the charge of theft by deception exceeding $5,000.