A Midlands man filed a $25,000 insurance claim for a hit-and-run crash, but an investigation showed the collision never happened and now the 33-year-old is facing multiple criminal charges, according to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division .
On Oct. 9, Sumter County resident Joshua Thomas Poole was charged with false statements, or misrepresentations, of economic benefit less than $1,000 (enhanced felony charge for history of two or more prior convictions) and presenting false claim for insurance payment (value $10,000) , SLED said in a news release.
The crimes happened in Florence County, arrest warrants show.
On Feb. 10, Poole filed a false claim to Progressive Insurance , reporting a hit-and-run, according to an arrest warrant. Poole said his vehicle had been sideswiped by another vehicle that drove away, the arrest warrant says.
But an investigation by Progressive, as well as accident reconstruction firm Ed Livesay and Associates and SLED determined that the collision never happened, the arrest warrant shows.
Additionally, Poole claimed injuries for the collision that did not occur, according to the arrest warrant.
“Poole attempted to gain an undeserved economic advantage from Progressive in the amount of $25,000 in settlement payments. The claim was denied,” the arrest warrant says.
The other charge accuses Poole of making false statements to Sentry Insurance from February to April, “with the intent of obtaining ... an undeserved economic advantage or benefit,” according to the arrest warrant.
During recorded statements, Poole impersonated a woman, using her name and birthday, to add and remove vehicles to an insurance policy in her name to get a more favorable insurance premium, the arrest warrant shows. The woman had no financial interest in the vehicles and they were not registered to her, and Poole was not listed as a driver on the policy, according to the arrest warrant.
Poole was booked into the Florence County Detention Center, where bond was set at $20,000 on the combined charges, jail records show. Poole remains locked up in the jail and is scheduled to appear in court again Dec. 18, according to Florence County judicial records.
The case will be prosecuted by the South Carolina Department of Insurance , SLED said.
If convicted on the felony false claim for insurance payment charge, Poole faces a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison and a $5,000 fine , according to South Carolina law. A conviction on the felony false statements charge comes with a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison and a $100,000 fine , according to South Carolina law.
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