SAN DIEGO/SAN FRANCISCO - State Compensation Insurance Fund has received restitution of $599,817 from the owner of a San Diego framing company convicted of workers’ compensation insurance fraud.  Robert H. Rodriguez, 50, of El Cajon, the owner of RH General Inc. and JBD Staffing, Inc. made full restitution to State Fund after pleading guilty to insurance premium fraud. 

Rodriguez was also sentenced to three years formal probation and ordered to perform 125 hours of community service. His wife and co-owner Sandra Rodriquez, 49, of Alpine and his office manager Christa Hellgren, 52, of San Diego, all pleaded guilty to one count of Insurance Code 11880 (a) Premium Fraud and one count of Unemployment Insurance Code 2117.5 Tax Evasion.

The Spring Valley framing contractor – whose business State Fund insured from 2001 to 2003 - falsified hourly wages of employees in order to qualify for a lower insurance premium.  Rodriguez reported payroll for low-wage employees under a classification used for high-wage employees, resulting in a lower premium rate.  In addition, he failed to report almost $500,000 in wages, bonuses and payments to unlicensed contractors, also lowering his premium rate.

The fraud was first discovered through a routine State Fund audit.  A search warrant was subsequently issued by the San Diego District Attorney’s Office and during a search of the premises, evidence of fraud was obtained.  

“Employers who engage in fraud gain an illegal competitive advantage,” said Donna Gallagher, Manager of State Fund’s Fraud Investigation Program (FIP). "State Fund will continue to work with local authorities to investigate and fight all types of fraud which robs California's employers of millions of dollars each year.”

Rodriguez also paid the state Employment Development Department restitution of $132,531. 
Sandra Rodriguez and Christa Hellgren were also each sentenced to three years summary probation.

State Fund’s Fraud Investigation Program (FIP) addresses all aspects of workers’ compensation insurance fraud, including employee, employer, medical, legal and internal. In the last decade, State Fund’s FIP has produced hundreds of arrests and convictions in a wide range of workers’ compensation cases, including some considered milestones in California’s fight against fraud.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Established by the California Legislature in 1914, State Compensation Insurance Fund guarantees the availability of workers' compensation coverage at cost to all California employers and competes fairly with private carriers. State Fund is a wholly self-supporting non-profit enterprise that serves as a moderating and stabilizing influence on California's workers' compensation insurance system.