Zalma on Insurance
Education • Business
Insurance Claims professional presents articles and videos on insurance, insurance Claims and insurance law for insurance Claims adjusters, insurance professionals and insurance lawyers who wish to improve their skills and knowledge. Presented by an internationally recognized expert and author.
Interested? Want to learn more about the community?
July 24, 2024
Guilty of Workers’ Compensation Fraud

Inflating On-The-Job Injury is Fraud
Post 4841

Read the full article at https://lnkd.in/g-7mcBEE, see the full video at https://lnkd.in/gYehF53V and at https://lnkd.in/gKgxYMa6 and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 4800 posts.

A jury found Waliullah Nazari guilty of two counts of making false and fraudulent statements for the purpose of obtaining workers’ compensation benefits and seven counts of attempted perjury under oath.

In The People v. Waliullah Nazari, D081940, California Court of Appeals, Fourth District, First Division (July 18, 2024) the Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction because surveillance proved Nazari had lied to his physician and insurer.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

In January 2019, Nazari fell off a ladder at work rendering him unconscious. Hospital records indicated he suffered a broad-based disc herniation between vertebrae 4 and 5, with resulting bilateral/lateral recess stenosis, and sciatica. Nazari submitted a workers’ compensation claim to Liberty Mutual Insurance (Liberty Mutual) and received benefits between January 5 and July 19 totaling $99,656.96.

Nazari’s treating physician recommended he receive an epidural steroid injection but Nazari’s insurance company declined coverage. Nazari saw an orthopedic surgeon for a second opinion about his need for the injection. Among other things, Nazari told the orthopedic surgeon that he needed a walker to stand and could not walk without using a walker. After a physical examination, the orthopedic surgeon recommended that Nazari receive the injection and follow-up with his treating physician.

THE SUB ROSA INVESTIGATION

On April 11, a private investigator working for Liberty Mutual conducted a recorded surveillance session and saw Nazari enter his car and drive away. He saw Nazari return in the car, exit the car, and walk without using a walker and with a normal gait. Later that day, he saw Nazari walk unassisted to a car, remove a folding aluminum walker from the trunk, assemble the walker, and then carry the walker out of view. A few minutes later, he observed Nazari walking slowly with a walker for support to a medical transport van where the driver assisted him into the van. When the van returned to the residence, the investigator watched as Nazari used the walker to slowly ambulate up the driveway and out of view. Nazari was later videotaped carrying a small child in his arms, assisting the child into a vehicle, and driving away.

Liberty Mutual deposed Nazari during the time between the video surveillance sessions and saw conditions different than shown during surveillance. During his second deposition, Nazari claimed, among other things, that he was unable to carry his child and could not drive because he used a walker.

Liberty Mutual closed the investigation and, as required by California statute and regulations, reported the matter to the local District Attorney’s Office and California Department of Insurance.

DISCUSSION

The People alleged that Nazari falsely or fraudulently told the orthopedic surgeon on April 1 that he “cannot walk without his walker” (count 1) and “cannot stand without his walker” (count 2).

APPELLATE CLAIMS

To determine the sufficiency of the evidence, courts review the entire record in the light most favorable to the prosecution to determine whether it contains evidence that is reasonable, credible and of solid value, from which a rational trier of fact could find that the elements of the crime were established beyond a reasonable doubt. Nazari contends the sub rosa videos of him walking and standing without the use of a walker after his April 1 visit do not show the falsity of his statements on April 1 because the orthopedic surgeon observed symptoms consistent with a back injury and he presumably received relief from the epidural injection.

There was no evidence in the record to support Nazari’s contention he received an epidural injection before he was subject to surveillance. Second, the orthopedic surgeon relied on Nazari being truthful when forming his conclusions.

Surveillance video taken on four subsequent dates showed Nazari walking normally and standing without the assistance of a walker. On two occasions, Nazari walked without the walker and then, minutes later, he required the assistance of a walker when transportation arrived to pick him up.

From the videos, the jury could reasonably conclude Nazari misrepresented his pain level, faked reliance on the walker during his physical examination, and falsely told the orthopedic surgeon that he required a walker to stand or walk.

The Court of Appeals concluded that the jury reasonably concluded that Nazari’s statements to the orthopedic surgeon were made for the purposes of obtaining workers’ compensation benefits. Accordingly, substantial evidence supported Nazari’s two convictions for workers’ compensation fraud under section 1871.4, subdivision (a)(1).

ZALMA OPINION

Regardless of the fact that the trial court suspended imposition of sentence and placed Nazari on probation for two years, sentenced him to 365 days in jail as a condition of probation, stayed pending successful completion of probation, and ordered him to pay restitution totaling $53,879.44 at $100 per month he filed this spurious appeal. People who commit fraud, in my experience, are astounded that they did not succeed and have gained enough from their crime to pursue a spurious appeal. The Court of Appeal should have reversed the sentence and made him spend the 365 days in jail.

(c) 2024 Barry Zalma & ClaimSchool, Inc.

Please tell your friends and colleagues about this blog and the videos and let them subscribe to the blog and the videos.

Subscribe to my substack at https://barryzalma.substack.com/subscribe or Subscribe to my substack at https://lnkd.in/gmmzUVBy

Go to X @bzalma; Go to Newsbreak.com https://www.newsbreak.com/@c/1653419?s=01; Go to Barry Zalma videos at Rumble.com at https://rumble.com/account/content?type=all; Go to Barry Zalma on YouTube- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCysiZklEtxZsSF9DfC0Expg

Go to the Insurance Claims Library – https://lnkd.in/gwEYk

00:10:06
Interested? Want to learn more about the community?
What else you may like…
Videos
Posts
September 18, 2026
Expert May Only Testify to What Experience Supports

Insurance Expert May Not Testify to Speculative and Contains Unsupported Conclusions.

Posted on September 18, 2026 by Barry Zalma

See the full video at and at https://rumble.com/v7fmifw-expert-may-only-testify-to-what-experience-supports.html

In Michele A. Over, and The Estate Of Paul R. Over v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, and State Farm Fire And Casualty Company, Civil Action No. 23-cv-02243-PAB-STV, United States District Court, D. Colorado (September 14, 2026) Michele and Paul Over sued State Farm Fire and State Farm Auto over hail-damage and stolen-vehicle claims.

The operative dispute concerned State Farm Auto’s motion to exclude or limit opinions from plaintiffs’ insurance-industry expert, Aaron Castillo. Castillo.

Law

The proponent of expert testimony must establish by a preponderance of the evidence that an expert is qualified and that the opinions are helpful, sufficiently grounded, and reliably derived and applied. Experience-based opinions must explain how the...

00:03:10
September 17, 2026
Convicted on 29 Tax-Refund-Fraud Counts

150 Months in Prison for Tax Fraud
Post 4846

Posted on September 17, 2026 by Barry Zalma

See the full video at https://lnkd.in/g8rh3JBX and https://lnkd.in/gmkdy-9C, In United States Of America v. Thomas Addaquay, Nos. 25-10609, 25-10611, United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit (September 9, 2026) the Eleventh Circuit affirmed all challenged convictions, the 150-month aggregate sentence, and the challenged $4,123,474.55 restitution award.

FACTS

In United States Of America v. Thomas Addaquay, United States Of America v. Thomas Addaquay, Nos. 25-10609, 25-10611, United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit (September 9, 2026) the Eleventh Circuit affirmed all challenged convictions, the 150-month aggregate sentence, and the challenged $4,123,474.55 restitution award.
FACTS

Thomas Addaquay controlled United Consolidated Accounting and Business Services (UC), nominally a check-cashing business.

The government proved a three-stage tax-refund scheme that converted the resulting refund checks into usable funds through ...

00:05:23
September 14, 2026
Court Enforces Fifth Amendment & Refuses to Compel Answers

Major Fraud Perpetrator Asserts Fifth Amendment Privilege to Avoid Prosecution

Post 5489

Posted on September 14, 2026 by Barry Zalma

Fraudster Refuses to Answer Questions About His Alleged Fraud

See the full video at https://lnkd.in/gvicAMDr and at https://lnkd.in/gvicAMDr

In Great American Insurance Co. v. Gemstone Property Management, LLC, et al., No. 23-cv-9100 (LJL), United States District Court, S.D. New York (September 8, 2026) Great American Insurance Company alleged that it was defrauded through a scheme in which Subin Associates, LLP recruited individuals to stage construction-site injuries, arranged unnecessary medical treatment and litigation funding, and pursued fraudulent personal-injury claims.

Luis Manuel Garcia Salcedo, resulted in a $6 million settlement. Non-party Jose Hernandez allegedly worked as an assistant manager at Subin, operated Hernandez Associates, and owned litigation-funding companies that shared office space with Subin and provided services to its clients.

After Great American ...

00:05:14
14 hours ago
Short And Plain Statement Containing Enough Factual Matter To State A Facially Plausible Claim

If Grounds For Dismissal Are Apparent From The Face Of The Complaint, A Court May Also Dismiss The Case on The Court’s Own Motion

Posted on October 5, 2026 by Barry Zalma

Pro Se Plaintiff Failed to Make a Short and Plain Statement

Post 4856

In Tak Lun Ng v. United Financial Casualty Company, No. 26-cv-03136-LJC, United States District Court, N.D. California (September 28, 2026) Tak Lun Ng, proceeding pro se, sued United Financial Casualty Company over a March 2, 2021 automobile accident and the insurer’s March 24, 2021 refusal to pay him.

He appeared to assert breach of contract, fraud, negligence, premises liability, product liability, and related theories. United removed the action from state court and moved to dismiss.

Ng missed that deadline but later filed several documents, including a motion for leave to amend, all of which the court reviewed.

LAW

Under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a complaint must provide a short and plain statement containing enough factual matter to state a facially plausible...

post photo preview
14 hours ago
Short And Plain Statement Containing Enough Factual Matter To State A Facially Plausible Claim

If Grounds For Dismissal Are Apparent From The Face Of The Complaint, A Court May Also Dismiss The Case on The Court’s Own Motion

Posted on October 5, 2026 by Barry Zalma

Pro Se Plaintiff Failed to Make a Short and Plain Statement

Post 4856

In Tak Lun Ng v. United Financial Casualty Company, No. 26-cv-03136-LJC, United States District Court, N.D. California (September 28, 2026) Tak Lun Ng, proceeding pro se, sued United Financial Casualty Company over a March 2, 2021 automobile accident and the insurer’s March 24, 2021 refusal to pay him.

He appeared to assert breach of contract, fraud, negligence, premises liability, product liability, and related theories. United removed the action from state court and moved to dismiss.

Ng missed that deadline but later filed several documents, including a motion for leave to amend, all of which the court reviewed.

LAW

Under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a complaint must provide a short and plain statement containing enough factual matter to state a facially plausible...

post photo preview
October 02, 2026
Announcement About False Claims Act Settlement Results in Damages Suit

Employee Report of Fraud Results in Damages Suit After Qui Tam Suit Settled

No Statutory Hearing Right Arose Because No Dental Commission Complaint License Suspension, Revocation, Or Sanction Occurred.

Post 4855

Posted on October 2, 2026 by Barry Zalma

In Abbas Mohammadi et al. v. William M. Tong et al., No. AC 47598, Court of Appeals of Connecticut (September 29, 2026) Abbas Mohammadi owned and operated Columbia Dental, P.C., which provided dental services through multiple Connecticut offices; Columbia Oral Maxillofacial Imaging, LLC served as the billing entity.

From April 2012 to February 27, 2013, Columbia Dental employed Brittany Ames Mahoney as a dental assistant. During her employment, Mahoney claimed to have discovered certain billing irregularities, including, but not limited to, false and fraudulent reimbursement claims submitted to the Department of Social Services for services rendered to Medicaid beneficiaries. Mahoney filed a complaint and an affidavit in the United States District Court for the District of...

post photo preview
See More
Available on mobile and TV devices
google store google store app store app store
google store google store app tv store app tv store amazon store amazon store roku store roku store
Powered by Locals