News: 2007 Press Release

LOS ANGELES ― Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner today announced that a former Los Angeles insurance broker surrendered himself to authorities after being convicted of two fraud counts. Gurjeet Singh (aka George Singh), 57, of Los Angeles, was sentenced on July 2, 2007 to serve one year and one day in federal prison after pleading guilty to two counts of mail fraud in connection with an insurance fraud scheme. The California Department of Insurance (CDI) collaborated with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Postal Inspection Service to uncover Singh's illegal activity.

"As Insurance Commissioner, protecting consumers is my number one priority," said Commissioner Poizner. "I will not tolerate thieves who prey on honest Californians. My investigation teams are committed to stopping fraud perpetrators and will continue bringing criminals to justice."

Investigators discovered that Singh, dba Monika Insurance Services in West Hollywood, was hired to provide automobile liability coverage for approximately 100 Prime Time Shuttle fleet vans providing shuttle services to Los Angeles area airports. From August 2002 to January 2005, Singh provided shuttle drivers with fraudulent insurance identification cards supposedly from legitimate insurance companies. Singh failed to remit more than $1.5 million in premium payments from Prime Time Shuttle.

Singh also admitted to falsely representing to victims that they were insured when, in fact, they were not. Singh also acknowledged that as a result of his scheme, 11 victims have suffered medical expenses and property damage resulting in at least $163,000 in unpaid losses. In addition to serving time in prison, Singh was ordered to pay $169,979.79 in restitution. This case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney's Office-Central District of California.