Piscataway Woman Sentenced to 3 Years for $170K Insurance Theft

A Piscataway woman was sentenced to three years in state prison for lying to an insurance company and collecting almost $170,000, Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman announced on Tuesday.

Loreta Fontanilla, 72, previously pleaded guilty to second degree theft by deception, Hoffman said. Fontanilla admitted to submitting 71 falsified invoices to MetLife Insurance Company concerning out-of-pocket expenses incurred for in-home healthcare services for her sick husband, Hoffman said. 

She collected $169,900 from the insurance company between January of 2005 and December of 2010. She claimed to have paid $237,019 total for between 52 and 93 hours of services each month.

An investigation conducted by the Office of Insurance Fraud revealed he really received between 10 and 40 hours of service, for a total due payout of $27,000.

She was indicted in December of 2012.

"This defendant stole thousands of dollars every month for six years by falsifying bills, but her greed caught up with her," Hoffman said in a prepared statement. "This type of fraud drives up the cost of health insurance for all of us. The sentence imposed today sends a clear message that defrauding insurance companies by padding invoices can, and will, lead to a lengthy prison sentence."