California Couple Sentenced in $1M Workers’ Comp Fraud Case

Carmen Hall Soruco, 70, and her husband Antonio Soruco, 75, both of Novato, California, were sentenced after pleading guilty to workers’ compensation fraud charges.

Hall was sentenced on multiple felony counts to two years of probation with full search and seizure, 120 days in jail, and ordered to pay more than $925,000 in restitution to State Compensation Insurance Fund and Employment Development Department.

Soruco was sentenced to one year of probation with full search and seizure, 120 days in jail, and was also ordered to pay more than $925,000 in restitution to SCIF and EDD after pleading guilty to multiple misdemeanor charges.

The California Department of Insurance began an investigation into Soruco Structures, a general contractor company, after a worker filed a workers’ comp claim alleging to be injured on a job site while working.

The business reportedly had not reported employees or payroll on their workers’ comp policy until the claim was filed. Although Soruco Structures was licensed as a sole proprietorship under Carmen Hall Soruco, Antonio Soruco, Hall’s husband, also operated the business.

The investigation reportedly showed Hall and Soruco committed workers’ comp premium fraud by failing to report employees and payroll to SCIF from Oct. 15, 2013 through Dec. 8, 2016.

The investigation further revealed unreported payroll to SCIF, leading to a premium loss of approximately $585,666. Investigators also reportedly discovered Hall and Soruco committed payroll tax evasion by failing to report employees and payroll to California’s EDD from Oct. 15, 2013 through Feb. 6, 2019 which resulted in a payroll tax loss to EDD of roughly $342,405.

The case was prosecuted by the Marin County District Attorney’s Office.

Topics California Fraud Workers' Compensation