Syracuse Yellow Cab Co. Takes Fraud Hit
August 6, 2010
A Syracuse taxi company was hit with fines totaling $5,000 after pleading guilty to workers’ compensation fraud charges involving a forged signature on an application for insurance with the New York State Insurance Fund.
Yellow Taxi Company of Syracuse, Inc., entered guilty pleas to felony charges of criminal possession of a forged instrument and offering a false instrument for filing on June 28, following an investigation by NYSIF’s Division of Confidential Investigations, the New York State Insurance Department Frauds Bureau and the Workers’ Compensation Board Fraud Inspector General’s Office.
Onondaga County Court Judge William Walsh fined the company $2,500 for each count.
Authorities previously arrested the owner of the company, Frank Manzi, Jr., 58, on December 18, 2009 following an investigation of a fraudulent application for insurance made to NYSIF by the company.
The case involved a signature that appeared on a NYSIF application, purporting to be that of the owner of the Yellow Taxi Company of Syracuse. Investigators said the name turned out to be the forged signature of a nursing home patient whose last affiliation with the company was in 1991.