Millions of dollars were swindled from an undisclosed insurance company in an alleged scam described as ‘appalling’. Five people have been arrested in connection with an alleged $3.2 million sober living home fraud scheme that preyed on vulnerable substance abuse patients to swindle millions of dollars from an insurance company, authorities announced Friday.
Taken into custody this week were Steven Lomonaco, 61, of Laguna Beach; Mahyar “Christian” Mohases, 37, of Santa Ana; Robert Williams, 41, of Murrieta; Nicholas Reeves, 42, of Aliso Viejo; and James Frageau, 29, of Temecula. They have been charged with multiple felony counts, including insurance fraud and money laundering, in connection with joint investigative efforts by the Orange County District Attorney’s Office and California Department of Insurance.
In addition, Mohases, Williams, Reeves and Frageau have each been charged with two counts of committing medical insurance fraud, one count of fraudulent written claim to an insurance company, two counts of money laundering in excess of $150,000, four counts of money laundering, and one enhancement for aggravated white collar crime over $200,000, according to authorities. They each face a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison if convicted on all charges.
Lomonaco also has been charged with two counts of committing medical insurance fraud, one count of fraudulent written claim to an insurance company, one count of medical insurance fraud, and one enhancement for aggravated white collar crime over $200,000. He faces a maximum sentence of eight years, four months if convicted on all charges.
