Naser Hasan Al-Sweity Arrested, Facing Insurance Fraud Charges
BOCA RATON, FL (Boca Post) (Copyright © 2023) — A Boca Raton Insurance Agent is behind bars, facing fraud charges.
Naser Hasan Al-Sweity, of the 11700 block of Bayou Lane, in the Saturnia community in Western Boca Raton, is accused of fraud for allegedly stealing hundreds of thousands in insurance premiums from his clients.
According to a lengthy arrest report written by an investigator with the Florida Department of Financial Services, Al-Sweity, owner of Florida P&C Insurance, is accused of ripping off customers and leaving them exposed. One of the victims found himself completely exposed after he suffered a catastrophic loss in the wake of Hurricane Ian.
In October of 2022, investigators with the Florida Department of Financial Services Division of Insurance Agent & Agency Services were contacted by the owner of an 11-unit apartment complex in Rotonda West, in Charlotte County, FL. The apartment was deemed a total loss in the wake of Hurricane Ian that slammed the area on September 28, 2022. The investigators were tipped off by the owner who says that he was denied a claim by CRC Group who said that he had no insurance coverage because his policy had cancelled due to non-payment. The owner was confused by this because he paid his insurance policy premium in full to Naser Hasan Al-Sweity, his insurance agent. As it turns out, Naser Hasan Al-Sweity collected a total of $26,568.60 from the victim, who thought he was paying his annual insurance premium. Al-Sweity then financed an insurance policy, in the victim’s name, and let it lapse before the damages were incurred by Hurricane Ian.
Investigators say that the owner of the 41 Palm Breeze property incurred a loss of $1,031,280.11 in out-of-pocket expenses due to Naser Al-Sweity’s actions causing the owner to not have coverage on his apartment complex when Hurricane Ian destroyed it in September 2022.
Investigators found that this was not an isolated incident, either.
According to the report, Naser Al-Sweity wrote a total of eleven insurance policies for the seven customers listed in this report. One of his customers, an owner of a convenience store in Fort Lauderdale, says he has known Al-Sweity for over 25 years. Al-Sweity accepted and deposited $ 122,327.31 worth of premiums paid upfront and in full for each of these policies. Naser Al-Sweity executed premium finance agreements with two different premium finance companies for ten of the eleven policies he wrote.
Another local victim, Southridge Village Condominium of Delray Beach, had an insurance policy cancelled after 6 months when Al-Sweity pocketed $22,402.60, instead of paying the premium.
Investigators say that Naser Al-Sweity illegally obtained $131,462.11 and committed identity theft by executing the premium finance agreements without approval from the insureds. Naser Al-Sweity listed the customer’s company name as the insured on each of the premium finance agreements, but he listed his own work or personal addresses and phone numbers as if they were the customer’s, in an effort to prevent the customer from receiving mail or phone calls regarding late payments or cancellations.
Investigators also say that Naser Al-Sweity misappropriated the $122,327.31 worth of premium funds by making monthly payments to the premium finance companies, most often late, on each of the policies he financed instead of paying the full premium amount due to CRC Group, the brokerage, after receiving the full payment from the insured. CRC Group also reported incurring a loss of $ 18,647.75 as a result of Naser Al-Sweity’s actions.
Two other policies cancelled prematurely due to Naser Al-Sweity not making the monthly payments to the premium finance company, resulting in a lack of coverage for those clients.
Al-Sweity was arrested on Monday, October 30th, 2023 and is now in PBSO custody with bond set at $130,000 where he faces the following charges:
- 817.034(4a1) Organized Scheme To Defraud ($50,000 Or More)
- 13 Counts Of 626.561(3b) Misappropriation Of Insurance Funds ($300.00 To $20,000)
- 10 Counts Of 817.568(2b) Fraudulent Use Of Personal Identification Information
