Jan. 25—HARTFORD — A Pennsylvania man has pleaded not guilty to defrauding the Connecticut-based insurance company where he used to work, officials say.

In a release, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut’s office said James Keating, a 51-year-old from Paoli, Pa., was indicted by a federal grand jury in the New Haven Federal Court and charged with 10 counts of wire fraud. It said Keating faces up to 20 years in prison for each count.

The U.S. attorney’s office said the indictment came down on Jan. 16, and Keating surrendered to authorities in Pennsylvania two days later. It said he appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas Farrish in Hartford on Thursday, pleaded not guilty and was released on $100,000 bond.

The U.S. attorney’s office said Keating was the assistant vice president and surety bond claims handler at Allied World Insurance Co., which handles bond claims in its Farmington office. He later served in the same role at U.S. Fire Insurance Co., a subsidiary of Crum and Forster, where he also handled claimed on bonds from Allied World.

Between 2017 and 2021, the U.S. attorney’s office said, Keating defrauded Allied World in two ways.

First, it said, he used a shell company called American Construction & Industrial LLC to bill Allied World for unnecessary claims and work that was not performed while he took the proceeds for himself.

Second, the U.S. attorney’s office said, he solicited and received kickbacks from Allied World vendors through another company he owned called Surety Risk Solutions. It said he did this without the knowledge of his employer.

The U.S. attorney’s office said Keating also caused these vendors to use another company, Kodiak Asset Recovery. It said he owned a stake in Kodak but did not disclose that to the vendors as he sold them products for vastly inflated prices.

Through the scheme, the U.S. attorney’s office said, Keating profited nearly $1.5 million from the three companies he owned.

Jan 25, 2024

By Josh LaBella

Josh LaBella is a breaking news reporter and former reporter for the Fairfield Citizen. He has been with Hearst Connecticut Media Group since 2020. When not working, he can be found playing video games or Dungeons & Dragons, reading, hiking or hanging with friends.

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