PORTLAND, Maine, September 18, 2008—A Cumberland County grand jury handed up indictments last week for three southern Maine men for crimes related to workers’ compensation fraud.

Landon Logsdon of Steep Falls, Ken Villella of Biddeford and Peter Ronfeldt of Limington were each indicted by the Cumberland County Superior Court’s Grand Jury on the same day. Each of the indicted men had been collecting workers’ compensation insurance payments from leading workers’ compensation insurer MEMIC. When the insurer’s investigations of the cases found deception, the company’s investigators handed the cases over to the Attorney General’s office.

“Workers’ compensation fraud is insidious,” said MEMIC President and CEO John T. Leonard. “When people try to take advantage of a system that is meant to serve legitimately injured workers, they give the whole system a black eye. That’s unfair and that’s why MEMIC will do all in our power to find those who perpetrate workers’ comp fraud, no matter who they are.”

The company said it routinely investigates 15 percent of its cases, finding fewer than 5 percent contain elements of fraud. While most of the investigations confirm the legitimacy of the injury, some warrant further efforts. Such was the case with the three indicted earlier this month. 

• Logsdon, who was indicted on one count of theft by deception, has been ordered by the Maine Workers’ Comp Board to repay about $19,000 after a finding showed that he falsely reported an injury to his employer and then attended training for another employer while supposedly being unable to work. He repeatedly misrepresented his injury to medical providers.
• Villella, indicted on one count of theft by deception, was collecting total disability payments under workers’ compensation while allegedly working as a part-time carpenter. He continued to represent that he was not working while collecting about $10,000.
• Ronfeldt was indicted for one count of perjury, which is alleged to have occurred in a workers’ compensation hearing, when he falsely reported that he was not working for another employer. Ronfeldt had been out of work from his first employer while collecting total disability payments of about $5,000.

MEMIC’s efforts to prevent workers’ compensation fraud include an in-house team of investigators as well as outside resources. The in-house team is staffed by former law enforcement officers who abide by strict rules regarding privacy. The company estimates that its fraud efforts help save its policyholders $2 million each year. The company offers an anonymous workers’ comp fraud tip line (1-800-ABUSE WC or 1-800-228-7392) and online at www.memic.com.

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About MEMIC

Maine Employers' Mutual Insurance Company (MEMIC), based in Portland, Maine, is Maine's largest and leading workers' compensation insurer, providing coverage to more than 21,000 Maine employers and their estimated 170,000 employees. The company is rated “A” (Excellent) by A.M. Best. More information can be found at memic.com. Since 1998, MEMIC has returned more than $84 million in collected capital and policyholder dividends to its policyholders. 

The MEMIC Group

The MEMIC Group is a workers’ compensation insurance specialist including MEMIC and its subsidiary, MEMIC Indemnity Company. The MEMIC Group is rated A (Excellent) by A.M. Best. Together, the MEMIC Group’s members are licensed to write workers’ compensation in 45 states plus the District of Columbia. MEMIC’s headquarters is in Portland Maine with offices in Manchester, NH; Glastonbury, CT; and Albany, NY.