Penn. Man Faces Jail Term for Setting House Fire for Insurance

January 8, 2013Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

A western Pennsylvania man faces up to 16 years in prison when he’s sentenced in April for setting his house on fire for the insurance money.

Forty-four-year-old John Albert Picardi, of Kittanning, acknowledged putting a sheet over a basement heater in hopes it would catch fire on Feb. 25, 2010.

Fire investigators originally blamed the fire on the supposedly faulty heater and ruled it accidental, but their investigation was reopened after Picardi’s live-in girlfriend told police he purposely put the sheet on the heater in hopes of collecting insurance money. The couple and their two children weren’t home when the fire started.

Picardi told an Armstrong County judge on Jan. 4 that he’s making arrangements to repay the money to Erie Insurance Co. and that he regrets setting the fire.

 

Copyright 2013 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetCategories: East NewsTopics: Erie Insurance, homeowners insurance, insurance fraudHave a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk

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Md. Woman Convicted of Disability Fraud, Faces Up to 5 Years in Jail

October 12, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticle1 Comments

Prosecutors say a woman who collected federal disability benefits while operating a fitness center has been convicted of making false statements to obtain those benefits.

A jury convicted 48-year-old Darlene Altvater of Mechanicsville, Maryland, on Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt. She faces up to five years in prison at sentencing Jan. 7.

According to evidence presented at trial, Altvater, who worked for the Postal Service, sustained on-the-job head and neck injuries. She began collecting federal workers’ compensation benefits in 2001.

Prosecutors say from January 2005 through December 2011, Altvater operated a salon, day spa and fitness center. Witnesses testified that Altvater demonstrated the use of fitness equipment. She was still receiving disability benefits.

 

Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetCategories: East NewsTopics: Fraud, Maryland, workers' comopensationHave a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk

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