Liberty Man Indicted for Setting Fire to House and Causing a False Insurance Claim to be Filed
Over $107,000 in Insurance Benefits Obtained from Fraudulent Claim

BOWLING GREEN, KY—A federal grand jury in Louisville returned an indictment on June 17, 2009, against Robert E. Petty, age 52, of Liberty, Kentucky, charging him with one count of mail fraud, Acting U.S. Attorney Candace G. Hill of the Western District of Kentucky announced today.

According to the Indictment, Petty, in March, 2004, conspired with two other unnamed individuals to set fire to a house, which was located at that time in Casey County, Kentucky. The purpose for setting the fire was to collect monies on the resulting claim filed with the insurance carrier, Kentucky Growers Insurance Company, Inc.  It is further alleged in the Indictment that the claim filed with Kentucky Growers Insurance Company, Inc. fraudulently concealed the insured party’s role in setting the fire. As a result of the claim filed, the insurance company issued a check in the amount of $107,141.36 to its insured, and in July, 2004, sent that check through the mail.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney James R. Lesousky, Jr., and it was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Kentucky State Police.

In the event of a conviction, the maximum potential penalties are 20 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and supervised release for a period of three years.

Petty appeared for arraignment before the United States Magistrate Judge on July 8, 2009, at 11:00 a.m., in Bowling Green, Kentucky.