Insurance Commissioner of Georgia Charged

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The Insurance Commissioner of Georgia, Jim Beck, has been charged with wire fraud, mail and money laundering.

A federal grand jury on Tuesday issued an indictment of 38 counts against the former insurance lobbyist and longtime leader of the Georgia Christian Coalition, alleging that he "s been guilty of murder. he had committed fraud through a series of insurance related schemes.

The proceeds of the so-called schemes earned him millions of dollars, some of which he even used for his campaign to public office, according to the indictment. He says that he has spent thousands of dollars in personal expenses, investments, improvement of personal rental property and payment of his income taxes, both federally and statewide.

The indictment indicates that the scheme allowed Beck to deflect more than $ 2 million and lasted until August 2018, more than two months after winning the Republican nomination for the position of Commissioner. insurance but before his election.

Beck, whose attorneys have claimed that he firmly denies the allegations, has held various positions in the state government in recent decades and is well known on Capitol Hill.

Beck hired William "Bill" Thomas, a former federal prosecutor, and Douglas Chalmers, who represented several GOP politicians in ethical affairs, to represent him.

"We intend to put up a vigorous defense," Thomas said. "Jim is eager to continue his work as Insurance Commissioner, protecting consumers in Georgia."

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The Republican was elected Insurance Commissioner last year.

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At the time of the alleged facts, which dates back to 2013, Beck was General Manager of Operations at the Georgia Underwriting Association, a Suwanee Insurance Association created to provide high-risk property insurance to homeowners in Georgia. He allegedly encouraged friends to set up companies and send bills to the Georgia Underwriting Association.

Beck is then passed for cash through two Carrolton – based companies he controlled, the Georgia Christian Coalition and Creative Consultants, according to the indictment.

It is unclear whether the friends, who are identified in the indictment only by initials, knew that the invoices could have been incorrect.

Thomas stated that Beck "acted legally and in good faith" in his duties at the Georgia Underwriting Association.

"Under his leadership, GUA has made multi-million dollar profits for the first time in its history," said Thomas, adding, "We are also pleased to note that these allegations are not related to Jim's behavior as a as Insurance Commissioner. .. "

Under state law, if Beck does not resign or ask to be suspended, the governor can act after a waiting period of 14 days if he determines that the charges weigh on the performance of his duties as commissioner. If the governor so decides, he will appoint a commission of three to review the charges. The commission has 14 days to make a decision. If they find that the duties fall within their functions, the governor must suspend the employee and appoint a temporary replacement.

Beck, a native of Carrollton, began his career in state politics in the mid-1990s as a press officer for the then lieutenant. Governor Pierre Howard, a Democrat. He has long headed the Georgia Christian Coalition, lobbying the General Assembly on a number of issues, including legislation legalizing the sale of Sunday liquor in grocery stores and liquor stores, to which the group's Is opposite.

He has also worked intermittently with previous insurance commissioners, John Oxendine and Ralph Hudgens, for whom he was chief of staff for a period of time.

Beck largely self-financed his insurance commissioner's primary campaign for the operations group last year, surpassing all opposition and winning a landslide victory in May's primary. He won despite media reports that he has repeatedly held full-time jobs in the public and private sectors at the same time.

After Beck won the primary, Oxendine organized a fundraiser for him and the insurance industry – which had backed his opponent from the GOP – started sending checks to campaign. He won a relatively tight victory against a Democratic insurance agent in November. Throughout the election campaign, and after the elections, rumors that an indictment was imminent were echoing on Beck.

Mr. Beck has spent much of his four months at the office improving consumer transparency by adding features to the agency's website, including data on complaints against insurance companies.

The Democratic Party of Georgia has called on Beck to resign.

"Commissioner Beck has abused his power for years of public service to enrich himself and defrauded the citizens he is supposed to serve and protect," said Democratic Party President Nikema Williams. "As an insurance commissioner, he should protect the Georgian people against corruption and fraud, but he instead has shown that it was exactly what they should be afraid of. He has no credibility to continue in his role and should resign immediately. "