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ELKINS -- A Randolph County woman faces three felony charges after allegedly committing insurance fraud on three separate occasions starting in 2022.
Megan Jo Knight is charged with three counts of insurance fraud, a felony. Knight was being held on three 10% cash, 90% personal recognizance bonds totaling $5,369, all of which have since been posted.
According to the criminal complaint filed by Special Agent John A. Wyatt with the West Virginia Offices of the Insurance Commissioner Special Investigations Division, on Dec. 18, 2022, Knight "backed into a vehicle" owned by another individual in her driveway. The vehicle Knight was driving was not added to her Geico policy until Dec. 5, 2022, the complaint states. Knight allegedly admitted this fact to Geico Insurance Special Investigator Mark Hill. On Dec. 21, 2022, Knight allegedly filed an insurance claim electronically with Geico Insurance for the Dec. 18 incident, stating that the "loss date" was Dec. 21. The amount on the claim was $2,251.40.
According to a second complaint, also filed by Wyatt, on Sept. 12, 2023, Knight's insurance policy through Progressive Insurance was canceled due to nonpayment.
On Sept. 17, 2023, around 3:25 p.m., Knight's child was involved in a motor vehicle collision with injuries in Tucker County, the complaint states. On the same date, around 11:48 p.m., Knight allegedly filed an electronic statement for "no loss" with Progressive Insurance and paid $576.36 to reinstate her policy.
Wyatt writes in the complaint that the electronic "no loss" statement was, in itself, "material false information" as Knight knew about her child's collision that day. A claim was made by the injured party's mother for $2,136.90 on a policy which Knight had allegedly "fraudulently obtained."
According to a third complaint filed by Wyatt, on May 3, 2024, around 11:15 a.m., Knight's child was involved in an accident with a West Virginia Division of Highways truck in which the child was left of center and hit mirrors with the WVDOH truck. Around 11:28 a.m. that same day, Knight allegedly electronically signed a statement of "no loss" through Progressive Insurance and paid $979.84 to reinstate her policy.
On June 3, 2024, American International Group, the insurance company for the state of West Virginia, contacted Progressive Insurance to inquire whether or not a claim had been filed for the incident, the complaint states. Progressive Insurance said a claim had not been filed and began the claim process on their end. The damage to the WVDOH truck was estimated at $1,325.40.