Four Plead Not Guilty in High Profile Insurance Fraud Case in R.I.

Four people pleaded not guilty last month in U.S. District Court in an alleged scheme to rip off an insurance company of nearly $50,000, including a former North Providence town councilman facing corruption charges in a separate case and a local radio personality.

Former Councilman John Zambarano pleaded not guilty to five counts of conspiracy and mail fraud, as did radio personality Lori Sergiacomi, who goes by the name Tanya Cruise on Lite Rock 105, insurance adjuster Vincent DiPaolo and Robert Ricci who also once served as North Providence town council president.

Zambarano, who was already out on bond in the corruption case, was released on $50,000 unsecured bond. The others were released on $10,000 unsecured bond. They were ordered not to leave the state, except for work.

Sergiacomi’s lawyer, William Devereaux, said she was still on the air at Lite Rock 105 as of last month.

Prosecutors say Sergiacomi’s home was damaged by record-setting rainfall and flooding in March, but she did not have flood insurance. They say she also wanted to make some improvements to her home and pool, so Zambarano, DiPaolo, and Ricci intentionally damaged them to make it look like they had been struck by a storm that never happened.

They then allegedly created fake invoices and submitted a false insurance claim for nearly $50,000 to an insurance company.

Zambarano is one of three former North Providence town council members who pleaded not guilty earlier this year to federal charges of conspiracy, extortion and bribery, along with Raymond Douglas III and Joseph Burchfield. They are accused of sharing a $25,000 bribe from a developer who wanted a zoning change to build a supermarket, among other schemes.

Mail fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, while conspiracy is punishable by up to five years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.