Claims Processor Sentenced For Role In $8.4M Fraud Ring

Six people – five from Indiana and one from Michigan – have been sentenced for their roles in a fraud scheme that defrauded both a bank and an insurance company.

The US Attorney’s Office for the district court in Indianapolis said that the six people stole over $8.4 million from a bank and an insurance company, both based in Pennsylvania. The office would not disclose the names of the bank and the insurance company.

The investigation into the fraud was led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana, joined by agents of the US Postal Inspection Service, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Ernie Perkins, 40, of Zionsville, IN received the longest prison sentence of the six, at 70 months. He is also the most prominent of the accused due to his involvement in both fraud cases. Perkins was sentenced January 05, 2021.

One of the other sentenced was Shalonda Coleman, 45, of Indianapolis, IN. Coleman was a former employee of the victimized insurance company, and was sentenced to two years for her role in the fraud.

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