Florida Man Pleads Guilty In Staged Accident Scheme

U.S. Attorney's Office

Middle District of Florida

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Friday, March 30, 2018

Winter Garden Man Pleads Guilty To Conspiring To Defraud Insurers In Staged Accident Scam

Orlando, Florida - Jonathan Brown (33, Winter Garden) today pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to the plea agreement, Brown and three others conspired to defraud insurance companies by submitting false claims following a staged car accident in Orange County, in May 2013. Brown, two co-conspirators, and the children of one of the conspirators were occupants in a car that was rear-ended by a vehicle being driven by a third co-conspirator in a pre-planned collision. After the collision, the conspirators, who had known each other for years, agreed to tell first responders that they did not know each other. They also agreed to seek emergency care for fictitious injuries purportedly sustained during the collision, and sought treatment from other medical providers for months following the collision. Brown and his co-conspirators then submitted fraudulent claims for medical expenses for unnecessary treatment, lost wages that had never incurred, attorney fees arising from threatened litigation, and compensatory damages for pain and suffering to their insurers, causing the insurers to pay out thousands of dollars based on those false claims.

This case was investigated by the Florida Department of Financial Services and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Eric K. Gerard.

Updated March 30, 2018