The case was referred to the AG’s office by the Insurance Fraud Bureau of Massachusetts
A Holbrook man was indicted this month for concocting a scheme in which he bought a collection of luxury cars with the intention of collecting insurance proceeds by intentionally damaging them. An investigation into the defendant’s activities began after a referral from the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) of Massachusetts.
Based on its investigation, the AG’s office alleged that from August 2016 through December 2017, Dion Augustin (23) purchased an array of luxury vehicles, including a Bentley, a Maserati, and two Fisker Karmas as well as renting various U-Haul trucks through a variety of deceptive financing practices. He is alleged to have used both his own name as well as a series of intermediaries or “straw purchasers” to facilitate financing for the acquisition of these luxury vehicles through misrepresenting his personal creditworthiness as well as those of his “straws”.
Once he or his straws bought the luxury vehicle, Mr. Augustin would insure the vehicle. As soon as insurance has been secured for each new vehicle in his luxury car collection, Mr. Augustin would put his plan into action. That plan involved deliberately damaging the luxury vehicles in order to report the damage as an accident and collect from the vehicles’ insurers for the loss.
The AG’s Offices estimates that Mr. Augustin, before the Insurance Fraud Bureau and Attorney General’s investigations put a stop to his activities, obtained $136,940 in financing through credit misrepresentations, and had collected more than $208,700 from his luxury vehicles’ insurers in fraudulent insurance claims based on the intentional property damage he had caused to the insured vehicles.
As a result of the investigation, Mr. Augustin was indicted by a Statewide Grand Jury on charges of Larceny Over $250 By False Pretenses (7 counts) and Motor Vehicle Insurance Fraud (8 counts). He is scheduled to be arraigned both in Middlesex and Norfolk Superior Courts later this year.
