Columbia Man Sentenced in $1.2 Million Insurance Fraud and $30,000.00 COVID-19 Relief Fraud Cases

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Columbia, Mo., man who ran a scheme to defraud insurance companies through staged accidents and who fraudulently applied for COVID-19 relief funds was sentenced in federal court today for conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud and aggravated identity theft.

Lawrence Courtney Lawhorn, 37, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Rosanne Ketchmark to a total of 21 years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Lawhorn to pay $187,109.75 in restitution to be divided among insurance companies, medical providers, and the Small Business Administration.

Beginning in 2017, Lawhorn staged automobile accidents in the mid-Missouri area.  Lawhorn participated in three staged accidents and recruited other people, including family members to participate in the staged accidents.  Lawhorn and the participants would go to various hospitals complaining of fake injuries thereby increasing the medical billing. As a result, the cost of a potential settlement with the insurance companies would increase. During one staged accident, Lawhorn spoke to the insurance company while pretending to be a person with settlement authority.

Lawhorn’s operation spread to the Kansas City, Missouri and St. Louis, Missouri areas. In total, Lawhorn either participated in or managed 10 total staged automobile accidents between 2017 until his arrest in 2020.  The total loss for all staged accidents was approximately $1.2 million.  In court, it was determined Lawhorn pocketed approximately $105,721.17 either through his direct participation or by requiring the other participants to pay him money.

In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Lawhorn, along with another person, Tina Battie, submitted applications for Economic Disaster Relief Loans that were available to small businesses during the pandemic. Lawhorn and Battie submitted applications to the Small Business Administration for the loans using fake businesses.  Lawhorn obtained $10,000.00 from his personal application and another $20,000.00 was obtained through two other fraudulent applications.  The loans were later forgiven.  Tina Battie was sentenced last year for her actions in the case.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Aaron M. Maness.  It was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Columbia, Missouri Police Department, and the National Insurance Crime Bureau.