YORBA LINDA, Calif. (KNX) — A former Orange County insurance broker has been arrested and charged with 81 felony counts in connection with what investigators have alleged was a scheme to steal premiums from customers.
Juan Carlos Martinez, 56, of Yorba Linda, operated Leeds Insurance Services Inc., which was based out of Orange, according to the California Department of Insurance. He has been accused of embezzling more than $27,000 from customers, the agency revealed this week.
Charges levied against Martinez include 12 counts of grand theft, 34 felony counts of forgery, 34 counts of insurance fraud, and one count of money laundering.
State officials alleged Martinez siphoned the funds to a personal investment account from which he withdrew cash. It was also alleged that he forced “bogus insurance documents” subsequently provided to victims as proof of being insured.
Prosecutors said they believed he had been orchestrating the scheme from as far back as 2011. Martinez’s insurance license expired in September 2016 for failure to renew, according to state officials.
“The charges serve as a warning to all that insurance fraud is a crime and punishable in a court of law,” said Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara. “My department is dedicated to investigating and stopping unlicensed, unscrupulous agents to protect California’s consumers and businesses.”
Court documents did not indicate how many victims were targeted by the former broker. He will return to Orange County Superior Court in March 2022 for arraignment.
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