Man once reported dead is arrested ; Lantigua, thought dead in
Venezuela, detained in N.C., faces fraud charges
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9:23:03 AM]
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April 15, 2015
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Man once reported dead is arrested ;Lantigua, thought dead
inVenezuela, detained in N.C., facesfraud charges
By Steve PattersonProquest LLC
A Jacksonville businessman who was reported dead in Venezuela
two years agowas arrested Saturday in North Carolina on federal
charges that moved a twistingparlor game of high-stakes fraud
claims from the courthouse to the jailhouse.
Jose Lantigua, 62, former owner of Circle K Furniture, was
jailed without bond inBuncombe County, N.C., which includes
Asheville in the western part of thestate, according to an inmate
database the jail there maintains.
Lantigua was arrested about 9 a.m. by officials who stopped a
car he wastraveling in with his wife, Daphne Simpson of Ponte Vedra
Beach, said JoshuaWoolsey, an attorney who has represented the
family in a tangle of civil suits instate and federal court since
Lantigua's death was reported in 2013. Simpsonwas released by
federal agents, but was arrested Saturday evening in St.
JohnsCounty.
Jail records in North Carolina said only that the Cuban native
was being held forfederal officials, and didn't specify
charges.
But a Jacksonville prosecutor said Lantigua faces insurance
fraud charges inFlorida involving policies worth $9 million from
seven companies.
"I've never had a case like this," said Assistant State Attorney
Joe Licandro,whose office has been looking into Lantigua's deals
along with state insuranceinvestigators.
Some companies that insured Lantigua had already paid on claims
after the U.S.embassy in Caracas issued a certificate used to
record an American's deathoverseas. Paperwork from Venezuela said
he had been sick and died during avisit and had been cremated
there.
But other insurers argued they were being swindled, and had
asked a judge torule that Lantigua was in fact alive.
The evidence for some arguments was far from clear, with
attorneys for oneinsurer presenting paperwork from a Venezuelan
court that was later shown tobe forged.
A Jacksonville judge ruled that while the paperwork brought to
his court wasfake, it wasn't clear who had produced it, so he
couldn't tell whether anyoneinvolved in his case had knowingly
lied.
Thu, Apr 16, 2015 / Updated 8:55 AM EST Have you considered
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Man once reported dead is arrested ; Lantigua, thought dead in
Venezuela, detained in N.C., faces fraud charges
http://insurancenewsnet.com/oarticle/2015/04/15/man-once-reported-dead-is-arrested-lantigua-thought-dead-in-venezuela-detain-a-613205.html[4/16/2015
9:23:03 AM]
Licandro said an arrest warrant for Lantigua had been issued
more than a yearago, but prosecutors had let that one drop after
problems emerged about someof the information underlying the case.
He said a new warrant charging insurancefraud and schemes to
defraud was issued within the past week.
Licandro said no warrant had been issued earlier for Simpson
becauseprosecutors weren't sure she knew he was alive. But after
she was found sharinga ride with him, those doubts seemed
settled.
To move the civil cases forward, attorneys in the last few weeks
sought helpfrom Venezuela's foreign affairs ministry in getting a
deposition from aVenezuelan man and to review some documents in the
South American countrywhose strained relationship with the U.S.
colored the background to the case.
In November, Woolsey told a federal judge that some material
affecting the civilcases came from a tipster who claimed to be a
government employee withinformation that "is sensitive in nature
and relates to matters of nationalsecurity."
Woolsey said Saturday that he and the firm he works for, Rogers
Towers, werewithdrawing as counsel for Lantigua's family.
"I and the law firm were shocked to learn this morning that we
have beendefrauded by acting and relying on the information ...
that indicated he wasdead," Woolsey said, noting the firm had
committed long ago to give up the civilcases if there was solid
information that Lantigua was alive.
Lantigua had also used the policies as collateral on loans he
had taken out, andhis disappearance left lenders waiting for
someone to make good oncommitments to cover the debt.
It will take more time to sort out all the details of who was
scammed, said oneattorney involved in the court fight.
"We're just now delving into one layer of the onion as to Jose
Lantigua's schemeof deceit," said Charles Jimerson, an attorney
representing American EnterpriseBank, one of the lenders left
holding the bag after Lantigua vanished.StevePatterson: (904) 359-
4263
Copyright:(c) 2015 ProQuest Information and Learning Company;
All Rights Reserved.Wordcount:674
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