Woman Steals Insurance Money By Submitting Fake Bills

WALLKILL, NY — A woman who had experience in medical billing and was accused of submitting fraudulent bills to her insurance company that amounted to about $90,000 will be spending time behind bars.

Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler said Shirley Bowens, 50, of Wallkill, was sentenced Tuesday to two to six years in prison after pleading guilty to third-degree grand larceny.

Prosecutors said, between 2019 and 2021, Bowens submitted fraudulent bills to her insurance company that misrepresented that she and members of her family had been hospitalized and received various treatments.

No such hospitalizations or treatments had occurred, authorities said.

Through the scheme, Bowens, who had experience in medical billing, stole about $90,000 from her insurance company, prosecutors said.

At her plea proceedings, Bowens admitted to stealing the money.

Hoovler said the Wallkill resident egregiously sought to enrich herself by making false insurance claims.

“While the defendant might have hoped for easy money,” he said, “instead the dedicated investigators who are part of the Orange County White Collar Crime Task Force identified her criminal actions and ensured that she was held accountable.”