Pennsylvania Socialite, Convicted of Millions in Insurance Fraud, Dies at 71

The judge called it a “spectacular” fall from grace after a well-known Pennsylvania socialite was convicted in 2019 of more than $13 million in insurance fraud.

Four years later, the Bucks County woman, Claire Risoldi, has died at age 71, leaving behind a complicated story of greed and false allegations against firefighters, but also generosity and caring towards others, according to local news reports.

Risoldi, known for her GOP fundraising and social events, was called the mastermind behind schemes that led to false insurance claims for three fires at her family’s Buckingham estate between 2009 and 2013. AIG Insurance paid out more than $10 million on one of the claims, although the family had claimed as much as $19 million in losses and sued AIG over the denials.

Part of the claim was for a large amount of jewelry, which Risoldi accused firefighters of stealing while they were battling the blaze at the mansion, The Morning Call and other news outlets reported. The family also vastly inflated the value of artwork that was lost in the fire, including a painting of the family on the ceiling, the Associated Press reported.

Defense lawyers argued that all three fires at the Clairemont estate were investigated by the insurance company and deemed accidental. Their experts blamed the last two on faulty wiring. The fire marshal’s office has declared the causes undetermined, according to prosecutors.

Authorities investigated for years, eventually finding that some of the same jewelry noted in the 2013 fire had been claimed in three previous incidents. In the end, the woman and five others were convicted of fraud and she was sentenced to as much as two years in prison. The judge, from another county after local judges recused themselves because of associations with the family, also ordered Risoldi to repay AIG the $10 million, as well as fines and costs.

Ownership of the estate was transferred to the state Attorney General’s Office, which sold the property as part of the restitution. The judge also mentioned the firefighters who were falsely accused, telling them they should feel vindicated after Risoldi’s conviction.

Risoldi appealed the conviction and died in July before the appeal was finalized.

Others, including family members, were also charged in the crimes. One was Risoldi’s second husband, a former Bucks County Sheriff’s Office supervisor. He killed himself before the case came to trial, the New Hope Free Press reported. Her son pleaded guilty.

Top photo: Firefighters at a 2009 fire at the Risoldi mansion, known as Clairemont. (AP Photo/The Intelligencer, Rich Kennedy)