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Louisiana attorney charged in alleged Hurricane Ida fraud scheme
Prosecutors say the scheme involved at least 856 false or misleading letters to insurers and that settlements were reduced by unauthorized attorney fees and expenses.
Hurricane Ida struck southeast Louisiana on August 29, 2021, and federal prosecutors have since charged former Louisiana attorney Richard William Huye III as part of a years-long case involving McClenny Moseley & Associates, according to federal court documents summarized by Insurance Business.
Prosecutors allege Huye joined a law firm that would intercept hurricane claims from homeowners without their knowledge, including by relying on assignment-of-benefits agreements signed by Hurricane Ida victims through an Alabama roofing company identified in regulatory records as Apex Roofing and Restoration.
According to the charging document, the firm then sent at least 856 false or misleading letters of representation to insurers, and in some cases a managing partner signed homeowners' names on settlement checks without permission, depositing proceeds into the firm's own account.
Insurance Business reports Louisiana regulators took action in February 2023 with an emergency cease-and-desist order, later announcing $2 million in fines that included the maximum $500,000 penalty for Huye and the firm's founding partners. Huye faces up to five years in prison if convicted.