School Bus Driver Arrested For Workers' Comp Fraud

New York, NY  (CompNewsNetwork) - A New Jersey school bus driver was arrested Thursday for fraudulently collecting $46,800 in workers' compensation benefits after claiming he was physically unable to work, the New York State Insurance Department reported.

Ronnie Allen, 54, of Trenton, was charged with fraudulent practices after he was arrested by the Suffolk County District Attorney's office. A hearing will be scheduled in Suffolk County Court. If convicted, Allen could be sentenced to up to four years in prison.

According to Francis T. Hunt of the Insurance Department's Frauds Bureau, Allen claimed he was unable to work as the result of a work-related illness he contacted in 1989 while employed as a New York Daily News truck driver. Allen is alleged to have advised Travelers Insurance on five different occasions that he was unable to work because of his disability. At the same time, he was employed as a school bus driver in Montgomery County, New Jersey.