Ohio Business Owner Sentenced to Prison for $425K Workers’ Comp Fraud

A federal judge has sentenced the owner of a now-defunct southwest Ohio payroll services company to six months in federal prison and a $10,000 fine after being found guilty of workers’ compensation insurance fraud.

John R. Cacaro, 59, owner of the now-closed Employers Choice Plus LLC, was found guilty of defrauding the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) out of more than $425,000, the Ohio workers’ compensation insurance provider reported.

Under a sentence handed down by U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson in the U.S. District Court for southern Ohio, Cacaro also must serve one year of house arrest and three years of supervision.

The Ohio BWC said Cacaro was convicted in June on wire fraud and money laundering charges after BWC and IRS investigators discovered a scheme he concocted to short BWC on the insurance premiums he received from employers and pocket the difference. According to the BWC and the IRS, Cacaro used the money to buy a second residence in Naples, Florida, as well as a motor home.

After his sentencing, Cacaro paid $425,247 in restitution to BWC.

Established in 1912, the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation provides workers’ compensation insurance to 242,000 public and private Ohio employers.

Source: Ohio BWC