Benicia Business Owner Pleads Guilty to Insurance Fraud & Grand Theft
A Benicia man has reportedly pleaded guilty to multiple charges of insurance fraud and grand theft in connection with a workers’ compensation fraud case.
In a press release, the California Department of Insurance announced that Kent Bo Fridolfsson, 67, pleaded guilty on April 5 to six charges of insurance fraud and grand theft. A multi-agency investigation had revealed that Fridolfsson had underreported payroll by nearly $1 million to unlawfully save money on workers’ compensation insurance and taxes.
For his crimes, Fridolfsson has been placed on probation, ordered to pay in excess of $725,000 in restitution, and will surrender his contractor’s license.
The investigation was carried out by the California Department of Insurance, Solano County District Attorney’s Office, and Employment Development Department. Investigators found that Fridolfsson, who’d had insurance coverage with State Fund from 2010 to 2021, reported zero payroll from 2010 to 2019.
Fridolfsson was required to report payroll for each policy period, the Department of Insurance said.
In January of 2019, one of Fridolfsson’s employees contacted State Fund about a work-related injury. State Fund contacted the Contractors State License Board, who in turn conducted a “site inspection” of Fridolfsson’s business.
Investigators ultimately found that Fridolfsson had underreported his payroll by $989,823, resulting in an illegal reduction of workers’ compensation insurance premiums. Fridolfsson was found to owe more than $382,000 in premium to State Fund and over $347,500 in unpaid payroll tax.
The case was prosecuted by the Solano County District Attorney’s Office.
