Troy auto shop owners indicted on charges of insurance fraud

Oct. 08--A Cheshire County grand jury has indicted the owners of an auto repair shop in Troy, who are accused of playing a role in an insurance fraud scheme.

Jay Coppo, 50, of Troy and Jodi Anne Champney, 45, of Winchester are charged with two counts each of insurance fraud between Jan. 26, 2012, and May 11, 2012.

The brother and sister own J & J Autobody of South Street, where prosecutors say a fire was intentionally set to a commercial wrecker Jan. 26, 2012, for the purpose of collecting insurance money.

Coppo and Champney are accused of concealing information from the insurer of the Peterbilt wrecker that the damage was intentional, according to indictments.

Two men employed at the auto shop in 2012 were indicted on related charges in June.

Christopher Pratt, 32, of Gilsum is charged with two counts of arson and one count of accomplice to insurance fraud.

Craig Fields, 32, of Swanzey is charged with two counts of accomplice to arson and one count of accomplice to insurance fraud. Fields' case is scheduled for a plea and sentencing hearing today in Cheshire County Superior Court.

An indictment is not an indication of guilt; it is a determination that prosecutors have enough evidence to move forward with a trial.

Other recent indictments include:

Diana Espaillat, 28, of Swanzey is charged with two counts of insurance fraud from Nov. 28, 2012, in Swanzey.

Espaillat is accused of sending her insurance company an estimate for a new furnace, water heater and sump pump, which she said were damaged in a flood when in fact they were not, according to indictments.

Prosecutors allege in indictments that Espaillat also submitted a bill for water mitigation and cleanup from a flood she alleged damaged her basement.

The value of each insurance claim was more than $1,500, according to indictments.

Emina M. Hoti, 31, whose address is listed as the Cheshire County jail in Keene, is charged with one count each of first-degree assault and second-degree assault from Aug. 14 in Keene.

Hoti also faces a misdemeanor charge of simple assault.

Hoti is accused of stabbing a person identified in indictments by the initials J.H. and of hitting J.H. with a sledge hammer.

Dustin Minshull, 20, of Hinsdale is charged with second-degree assault from Aug. 24 in Hinsdale.

He also faces two counts of simple assault.

Minshull is accused of chocking a woman, punching her in the head and kicking her in her torso, according to indictments.

Pia Bergeron, 42, of Keene is charged with falsifying physical evidence, possession of morphine, possession of buprenorphine, possession of heroin with intent to sell, possession of cocaine with intent to sell, and two counts of sale of heroin. Buprenorphine is a drug generally prescribed by doctors to treat opiate addiction.

Bergeron is accused of having controlled drugs in January in Keene, and of flushing cocaine down the toilet in an attempt to compromise the authorities' probe, according to indictments.

Paul Shaw, 44, of Fitzwilliam is charged with possession of heroin and possession of buprenorphine from June 28 in Marlborough.

He also faces a misdemeanor charge of possession of marijuana.

Bryon Bouchie, 30, of Sullivan is charged with two counts of burglary and one count of theft by unauthorized taking in August in Keene.

Bouchie is accused of burglarizing homes on River and Sullivan streets in the city, and of stealing a firearm from the Sullivan Street residence, according to indictments.

Gordon Heckman, 55, of Keene is charged with burglary from Aug. 29 in Keene.

He is accused of burglarizing an apartment on Green Street, according to indictments.

Peter T. Holt, 42, whose address is listed as the Cheshire County jail, is charged with criminal mischief.

He is accused of causing more than $1,500 in damage to a kiosk machine July 29 in Keene.

Robert Harris, 53, of Fitzwilliam is charged with bail jumping, because he failed to appear for a final pretrial hearing Aug. 26 in Cheshire County Superior Court in Keene, indictments show.

Daniel Herman, 45, whose last known address was Bowling Green, Ohio, is charged with criminal non-support between Nov. 1, 2005, and Sept. 29, 2014, for failing to provide child support for his two children, according to indictments.

w

___

(c)2014 The Keene Sentinel (Keene, N.H.)

Visit The Keene Sentinel (Keene, N.H.) at www.sentinelsource.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services