Atlanta, GA. (CW44 News at 10) – Former Georgia Insurance Commissioner Jim Beck was sentenced to federal prison for theft of more than $ 2,500,000 by the Georgia Underwriting Association (GUA).
“Former Commissioner Beck has been blamed for taking advantage of his trust with the GUA, stealing millions of dollars from his employer, and then defrauding the IRS,” said Acting US Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “When he was charged with these offenses in 2019, he was the newly elected Georgia Insurance Commissioner. Fortunately, the FBI and IRS exposed these crimes before Beck had the chance to do more damage as a national official. ”
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“Beck’s actions were full of greed and selfishness as he took full advantage of his employer (GUA) and his friends, who placed him in a high position of trust,” said Chris Hacker, special agent in charge of the FBI Atlanta. “This conviction should serve as a warning that no matter how elaborate a plan is, the FBI and our partners will use whatever means necessary to hold fraudulent persons accountable for their actions and bring them to justice.”
“Beck abused his position as General Manager of Operations for the GUA when he was conducting a series of fraudulent transactions to siphon funds from a valuable organization. IRS Criminal Investigation is proud to have helped our partners uncover Beck’s fraud for his personal benefit, ”said James E. Dorsey, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation Atlanta Field Office. “By pooling the skills of each agency, we create an impressive team as we investigate allegations of misconduct. This condemnation shows our collective efforts to enforce the law and maintain public confidence. “
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According to Acting US Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information were presented in court: From January 2012 until Beck was sworn in as Insurance Commissioner on January 14, 2019, Beck was employed by the GUA as General Manager of Operations after being elected by the GUA Board of Directors. GUA, based in Suwanee, Georgia, is an insurance association formed under the Georgia Fair Access to Insurance Requirements (FAIR) Act to provide high-risk property insurance to homeowners across Georgia. In addition to the premiums collected from its customers, GUA also finances itself by issuing reports to the association members, which include all insurers that are authorized to take out any form of property insurance in Georgia.
While Beck served as the general manager of GUA, he also maintained control of the financial holdings in two companies known as Creative Consultants and the GA Christian Coalition. In early 2013, Beck persuaded four employees – all of whom were either friends or family members – to start four separate companies that allegedly provided necessary services, including home inspections and water damage mitigation, for GUA. Then Beck regularly approved substantial GUA payments to the four companies through a sophisticated system of fraudulent invoices that involved creating false records and hiding the truth from his four employees. Beck then created fraudulent invoices from Creative Consultants and GA Christian Coalition for services that were never performed, and at Beck’s direction, his four employees paid the fraudulent invoices with the money they had received from GUA. Between February 2013 and August 2018, Beck stole more than $ 2,500,000 from GUA.
Beck was also convicted of his tax fraud convictions on four counts of filing false federal income tax returns for 2014-2018. Beck’s tax returns for those years were fraudulent because they significantly overstated business expenses and significantly underestimated business profits for Becks Creative Consultants and GA Christian Coalition. The tax loss for the IRS was more than $ 350,000.
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Jim C. Beck, 60, of Carrolton, Georgia, was sentenced to seven years in prison, three months in prison, followed by three years supervised release, in compensation of more than $ 2,619,000, and with over $ 426,000 confiscated – Dollars, two pieces, fined real estate and a personal judgment of $ 2,064,781.85. Beck was found guilty by a jury on July 22, 2021.