Couple charged with bilking millions from hundreds of senior citizens

Couple charged with bilking millions from hundreds of senior citizens

SACRAMENTO
April 26, 2013 11:32am

•  Victims may be statewide •  “The egregious nature of these acts is reprehensible”

Michael Woodward, 50, and his wife Melissa Woodward, 47, are charged with scamming more than 230 San Diego area senior citizens out of $1.9 million – and there may be victims statewide, says California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones.

The pair is accused of burglary, grand theft, theft from an elder and other charges.

Officials are asking anyone who suspect they or someone they know have been victimized, to call the Department of Insurance at (800) 927-4357.

For over a decade the Woodwards allegedly ran a $6 million scam bilking hundreds of seniors across 10 states while operating under numerous aliases and bogus businesses, the state says.

According to department investigators, the Woodward's sold fraudulent in-home non-medical senior service contracts. They targeted seniors by telling them that for a pre-paid annual fee they would get an unlimited amount of non-medical services.

"I find crimes targeting seniors especially galling and offensive," says Mr. Jones. "The egregious nature of these acts is reprehensible. The alleged actions of the Woodward's have resulted in the loss of nearly $2 million.”

An investigation revealed that Mr. Woodward and his wife were allegedly failing to provide services they promised and that when their customers made claims that were expensive, the Woodwards rejected the claims, the state says. They also allegedly returned to victim's homes to collect additional premiums that were well beyond the original cost of the plan.

"The defendants in this case were ruthless and heartless in the way they targeted the elderly and sold them fake insurance policies," says San Diego County District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis