W.Va. School Bus Driver Pleads Guilty to Two Counts of Workers’ Comp Fraud

Terry Lee Villers of Wirt County, W.Va. has pleaded guilty in Kanawha County Circuit Court of two felony counts of workers’ compensation fraud.

According to Insurance Commissioner Janet L. Cline, Villers knowingly secured benefits to which he was not entitled and made a false statement under oath. Both charges stem from Villers’ claim in September 2004 that he was injured while working as a school bus driver for the Wirt County Board of Education.

“Villers filed a report indicating that he suffered a work-related knee injury upon exiting a bus at the Board’s bus garage parking lot in Elizabeth” Cline said. “An anonymous phone call to the Workers’ Compensation Fraud Hotline prompted an investigation, and evidence was found that Villers actually was injured when he jumped off a dozer while working in his private contracting business.”

Medical expenses and disability benefits of nearly $12,000 dollars were paid by the Workers’ Compensation Commission in the claim.

Sentencing in the Villers case is scheduled for Dec. 16 in the Circuit Court of Kanawha County. The court may order imprisonment in a state correctional facility for up to 10 years for the false claim and up to three years for the false report.

Topics Fraud Workers' Compensation Personal Auto Virginia Education