Ex-cops turned into snitches?

Two Union County cops recently convicted of official misconduct in a fraud scheme may be forced to snitch on other members of their ring.

Roselle Boro police officer John A. Smith was sentenced this past Friday to a year's probation, a $5,000 fine and being permanently barred from public employment for his role in the auto insurance fraud scheme.

He joins his friend, former Plainfield police officer Samad Abdel, who received an identical sentence a month ago. The two are part of a ring that has defrauded State Farm Insurance and at least four other companies of millions of dollars in false claims.

State Farm filed a civil lawsuit in 2004, that paints the ring as --

a vast conspiracy that included 38 members who were strategically located in police departments, insurance agencies and auto body shops, making it "virtually undetectable."

With both officers now sentenced -- leniently, as some point out -- the question becomes, will they be snitching on the others in the ring?

That will be interesting to see.

Oh, and the name of the body shop the frauds were run through?

Creative Auto Body.

Worthy of Tony Soprano.

---

Archived stories--

• Courier (Abdel) - 05/26/2007: "Swindling city cop to pay $5K fine"
• Ledger (Smith) - 06/23/2007: "Officer loses his badge for role in insurance bilk"

-- Dan Damon

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ARCHIVED POSTS OF PLAINFIELD TODAY FROM 11/03/2005 THROUGH 12/31/2006 ARE AT
http://plainfieldtoday.blogspot.com/