Florida CFO Jimmy Patronis Announces Three Arrests in Insurance Agent Testing Fraud Scheme

Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis announced the arrest of two insurance agents, and a third individual, for their alleged involvement in an insurance agent license testing fraud scheme in Miami.

According to an official statement from Patronis’ office, Rainer Miguel Salas and his son Rainer Alexander Salas, a licensed Florida insurance agent, and receptionist Karla Lit Peralta Ceballos, also a licensed Florida insurance agent, allegedly accepted payments and facilitated the fraudulent acquisition of approximately five Florida insurance agents’ licenses by taking licensing exams on behalf of other individuals.

“Florida’s insurance agents and agencies are held to the highest professional standards and are crucial to guiding consumers through the insurance landscape and supporting them during critical times like filing claims following disasters,” Patronis said. “It’s reprehensible that this father and son duo facilitated cheating on the state insurance exam just to make a quick buck. Such fraudulent behavior undermines the trust and integrity expected of our state’s licensed insurance agents. In Florida, we fight fraud in all forms and I thank our fraud detectives, the Bureau of Agent Investigations, and the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office for their diligence in apprehending these perpetrators and bringing them to justice.”

In April 2024, the CFO’s Criminal Investigations Division (CID) was alerted about an unlicensed insurance agent who allegedly conducted prep courses for insurance license applicants at D&R Insurance Group, Inc. in Miami. This location, functioning both as an insurance agency and a test prep center, was suspected of aiding individuals taking Florida’s mandatory insurance agent licensing exam. Rainer Miguel Salas and his son, Rainer Alexander Salas, employed various tactics to bypass online testing security protocol. Evidence was gathered indicating that from September 2023 to February 2024, Rainer Miguel Salas, prohibited from insurance activities in Florida, his son Rainer Alexander Salas, a licensed Florida insurance agent, and receptionist Karla Lit Peralta Ceballos, also a licensed Florida insurance agent, accepted payments and facilitated the fraudulent acquisition of approximately five perspective insurance agents’ licenses by taking exams on behalf of individuals, with more participants suspected in this scheme.

Rainer Miguel Salas, Rainer Alexander Salas, and Karla Lit Peralta Ceballos were booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on Thursday, June 27, 2024 on Felony charges including General Conspiracy to Commit Violations of Representing, Aiding Unauthorized Insurers, Scheme to Defraud, and violation of the Florida Communication Fraud Act. If convicted, all subjects could face up to 15 years in prison. The Miami Dade State Attorney’s Office, who partnered in this investigation will lead the prosecution.