MARCH 17, 2015
PIKEVILLE, KY
Three members of a Floyd County family admitted in federal
court that they attempted to defraud insurance companies out of thousands of
dollars. On Monday, Charles Ray Tackett, 42, his son, Michael Ray Tackett, 25,
and his wife, Anna Grace McGuire Tackett, 27, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and
conspiracy before U.S. District Judge Danny C. Reeves.
According to court documents, Charles Tackett devised a
scheme to defraud insurance carriers, by fraudulently obtaining insurance on
classic vehicles.
Tackett admitted he purchased vehicles, including a 1971
Cadillac Deville and a 1972 Oldsmobile, and falsely reported to the insurance
companies that the vehicles had been fully restored through a body shop, when
no such work had been done to the vehicles.
Tackett claimed the cars were worth significantly more than
their actual value and he obtained insurance based on the inflated value of the
vehicles. After the vehicles were destroyed in a fire, Tackett attempted to
recover money by filing a claim under the fraudulently obtained insurance
policy. Tackett also acknowledged he recruited his wife and son to join the
conspiracy.
They executed similar schemes involving a 1978 Chevy Monte Carlo, a
1979 Pontiac Trans Am, and a 1984 Pontiac Firebird. Kerry B. Harvey, United
States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, and Howard S. Marshall,
Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, jointly announced the
guilty pleas.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of
Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kate K. Smith represents the federal
government in this case. All three defendants are scheduled to be sentenced on
June 22, 2015.
They face a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and a maximum
fine of $250,000. Any sentence will be imposed by the Court after consideration
of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statutes.