ALBANY WOMAN SENTENCED TO SIX MONTHS IN JAIL AND PROBATION

An Albany woman was sentenced to six months in jail and five years’ probation in Schoharie County Court on Dec. 3 in connection with an April 2007 fire at a Town of Cobleskill home.

Kim M. Laporte, 39, of 1 Cardinal Ave., was sentenced by Judge George R. Bartlett III after pleading guilty to felony insurance fraud and falsifying business records. She was also ordered to make $5,000 restitution to Travelers Insurance Company.

Laporte was accused of removing personal belongings from her home in Cobleskill the day before a fire occurred at the two-story frame structure. She then fraudulently attempted to obtain a $38,000 payment under a renter’s insurance policy with Travelers. In addition, she was accused of falsifying an earlier claim for damages resulting from the collapse of a garage on the property.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation by the Schoharie County Arson Task Force.

Cobleskill police Sgt. Richard Bialkowski arrested Laporte following an investigation by Philip D'Angelo of the Insurance Department’s Frauds Bureau.

William P. Andrews of the Insurance Department prosecuted the case for the office of Schoharie County District Attorney James Sackett under the Department’s Special Prosecutor Initiative. The initiative is an Insurance Department program that provides resources to county district attorneys offices to combat insurance fraud.