DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. -
A DeKalb County accountant is accused of falsifying multiple life insurance applications and collecting over $11,000 in death benefits.
FOX 5 News was there as police and state fraud investigators arrested Earle M. Turner Sr. at his Covington Highway office.
Detectives said they began investigating Turner last May when an insurance company contacted the Georgia Department of Insurance after realizing they had three life insurance policies with Turner listed as the beneficiary. The policyholders had no idea, according to police.
The 67-year-old Certified Public Accountant (CPA) has been charged with 19 counts of insurance fraud, 11 counts of identity fraud, and one count of theft by deception.
Police said all of the victims were Turner's clients, who he was filing taxes for.
If convicted, Turner could face up to 10 years in state prison.
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Warrants: Man illegally got life insurance on 19 seniors in DeKalb
Joshua Sharpe The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
1:11 p.m Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2017
DeKalb County, GA
Channel 2 Action News Earle Turner Sr., a DeKalb County accountant, was arrested Wednesday on accusations of taking out life insurance policies on unsuspecting elderly people.
A DeKalb County accountant was arrested Wednesday on charges of insurance fraud for allegedly taking out life insurance policies on 19 elderly customers without permission.
Earle Turner Sr., 67, faces 30 various counts of insurance and identity fraud, according to a news release from Georgia Insurance Commissioner Ralph Hudgens.
“Apprehending this suspect is a victory for all Georgia insurance consumers,” said Hudgens.
According to the release, Mutual of Omaha notified Georgia officials of suspected fraudulent activity by Turner after finding him as the beneficiary of three policies. The three victims said they hadn’t given Turner, who runs an office on Covington Highway, permission to take out the policies.
The investigation eventually found all 19 policies, each of which bore the name of one of Turner’s customers. Five of them died while he allegedly had policies in their names, but only one policy of $10,000 fully paid out.
“Fortunately our investigators stopped this scheme before more policies were submitted without the consumer’s knowledge,” Deputy Insurance Commissioner Jay Florence said.