NEW ORLEANS – The first prison sentence has been handed out in the continuing investigation by the U.S. attorney into staged auto accidents designed to defraud trucking companies and insurers.
Peter Strasser, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana, announced Jan. 22 that Mario Solomon, 48, of New Orleans has been sentenced to 21 months behind bars for his role as a “spotter” in a wide-ranging conspiracy involving attorneys, drivers, medical providers and car passengers. The ultimate goal was to ensnare big-rig companies into insurance fraud schemes, according to indictments filed by Strasser’s office.
Solomon was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. As a spotter, he picked up fellow conspirator Damian Labeaud, the driver of a passenger car who collided with 18-wheelers during incidents in 2017. Typically, spotters also serve as accident “eyewitnesses” who give false accounts of what happened to police on the scene.
Solomon will also have to serve three years of supervised release after he completes his prison term, as well as pay restitution of nearly $72,000 to the victims of the crime.
Staged accidents carried out by multiple conspirators using cell phones defrauded trucking and insurance companies through bogus medical claims and insurance filings in recent years, authorities said. They have been blamed for inflating insurance premium costs in Louisiana.
“Automobile insurance fraud is a significant problem that increases premiums for every Louisiana driver,” Jeff Albright, chief executive officer of the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of Louisiana, told the Louisiana Record in an email. “Effective law enforcement, fraud convictions and stiff jail sentences will help reduce fraud and premiums.”
Solomon was sentenced for his role in at least two staged big-rig accidents in June 2017. His co-defendants – Labeaud, Larry Williams, Lucinda Thomas, Mary Wade, Judy Williams and Dashontae Young – have pleaded guilty to taking part in the conspiracy. Solomon’s co-defendants received $43,000 for taking part in the scheme to file fraudulent lawsuits, a news release from Strasser’s office states.
Labeaud has acknowledged his role in the staged accidents, which led to car-passenger participants being referred to medical providers for treatment in order to increase damages payouts in future lawsuits, according to the New Orleans U.S. Attorney’s Office.