Authorities have taken into custody Kenny Niebla from Miami on allegations of embezzling nearly $60,000 from fake insurance premiums, as reported by the Florida Department of Financial Services.
Niebla is recognized as the proprietor of Andoba Trucking Co. and Sea Trucking located in Hialeah. He is accused of providing fraudulent insurance coverage by issuing insurance certificates worth almost $60,000 to three local trucking businesses.
“Stealing insurance premiums for personal enrichment is reprehensible. It leaves the victims exposed without appropriate insurance protection and places unsuspecting drivers in a precarious financial situation,” stated the state’s chief financial officer, Jimmy Patronis, in a news release.
Investigations revealed that between October 2017 and June 2018, Niebla had been receiving monthly insurance premium payments from three victims. Records show that he collected $59,675 in premiums that were never allocated to any legitimate insurance policy as promised. Instead, Niebla pocketed the funds for personal gain, leading to the commercial vehicles being unknowingly operated without insurance. The fraudulent activity came to light when one of the trucks was involved in an accident, resulting in over $78,000 in damages that were uninsured.
Niebla was arrested on November 30 without incident and was taken to the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. He faces multiple charges, including grand theft, diversion of insurance funds, forging instruments, and engaging in a scheme to defraud. If found guilty of all charges, he could be sentenced to a maximum of 20 years in prison.
