CHARLOTTE — A former insurance executive from Durham has been indicted on federal charges after allegedly “masterminding and directing a massive scheme” involving nearly $2 billion in insurance fraud.
Greg E. Lindberg, 53, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Charlotte on Thursday for conspiracy to commit crimes in connection with an insurance business, wire fraud, four counts of false insurance business statements presented to regulators, six counts of false entries about the financial condition or solvency of an insurance business, and one count of money laundering conspiracy.
Court documents say that Lindberg and other suspects agreed to defraud various insurance companies and thousands of insurance policyholders. He’s also accused of concealing how well his insurance companies were doing, deceiving the North Carolina Department of Insurance and other regulators, and using company funds for his personal benefit. According to the documents, the alleged fraud happened from 2016 through at least 2019.
The Department of Justice says Lindberg used company funds to “finance his lavish lifestyle, including the purchase and refinancing of personal real estate and forgiving more than $125 million in loans from his affiliated companies to himself.”
According to the indictment, Lindberg also caused “the insurance companies to engage in investments of nearly $2 billion as part of his scheme.”
“The indictment reveals a carefully orchestrated scheme that relied on a web of complex financial investments and transactions designed to evade regulators, disguise the financial health of Lindberg’s insurance companies, and conceal the alleged purpose of the scheme: Lindberg’s personal gain,” U.S. Attorney Dena J. King said in a statement.
In 2020, Lindberg was sentenced to more than seven years in prison for trying to bribe the state insurance commissioner for favors. But last year, a judge vacated that conviction and ordered a new trial. He’s still awaiting trial in that case.
According to the Dept. of Justice, the FBI’s Charlotte field office is investigating the case.
Lindberg turned himself in and was arraigned in federal court on Thursday, March 2. He was released on bond, and his next court date is set for May 1.
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