How Are We Doing?
Some Current Statistics

Arrests and Convictions: First Half, 2001 – 2002

• The number of arrests resulting from Frauds Bureau investigations in the first half of 2002 reached 435, outpacing the total for the same period last year by a whopping 43%.

• The Frauds Bureau joined with other law enforcement agencies in a number of successful sweeps that contributed to the significant number of arrests posted during the first six months of 2002. A joint investigation with the Attorney General’s Office newly created Auto Insurance Fraud Unit led to the arrest in January of 20 suspects accused of staging accidents and submitting phony medical bills. In May, an investigation known as "Operation Fraud Fools" resulted in the arrest of 12 car owners, including a doctor, a physician’s assistant and a stockbroker, for their role in an auto "give-up" scheme. An ongoing investigation by the Frauds Bureau and the Queens DA’s Office led to the arrest in June of 21 persons alleged to have submitted false claims for injuries stemming from auto accidents that never occurred. Not to be discounted are the day-to-day investigations that brought about arrests of many individuals accused of workers’ compensation fraud, staged accidents, over-billing by health care providers and various other charges.

• The number of criminal convictions obtained by prosecutors in Frauds Bureau cases more than doubled over the year, climbing from 88 in the January-June 2001 period to 199 in the same period in 2002.

• The Frauds Bureau received nearly 12,000 reports of suspected insurance fraud during the first six months of 2002, compared with 10,363 during the same period a year earlier. In an effort to eliminate the more than 20,000 paper reports received each year, the Bureau established an electronic reporting system in March 2000. Currently, about 54% of all fraud reports are submitted electronically.