James Grant King, Insurance Settlement Defraudment, Kentucky 2017

A licensed Kentucky attorney has been found guilty of devising a scheme to defraud numerous clients of insurance settlements totaling at least $550,000, announced United States Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr. James Grant King, 43, of McCracken County, Kentucky, pleaded guilty in United States District Court to various charges including aggravated identity theft and wire fraud.

From at least March of 2007 through May of 2017, King practiced as a plaintiff’s attorney for numerous clients within the Western District of Kentucky and elsewhere. He would seek to settle their cases with insurance companies, but then keep most or all of the settlement amounts for himself. King would often forge the signatures of his clients on checks sent by insurance companies to cash or deposit the checks without their knowledge.

In addition to the insurance settlement scheme, King also obtained a $97,500 personal loan from a McCracken County individual by transferring the title of a Phoenix Model 920 Pro XP boat as collateral. However, a few months later, King sold the boat without repaying the loan, leaving the individual with significant financial losses.

If convicted at trial, King could face a sentence of 42 years in prison, pay a fine of $750,000 and be required to serve a three years period of supervised release. U.S. Attorney John Kuhn expressed his commitment to pursuing justice for King’s defrauded clients and seeking a sentence that reflects the severity of his crime.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Nute A. Bonner and is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the McCracken County Kentucky Sheriff’s Department.

As a licensed attorney, King had a fiduciary duty to act in the best interests of his clients. Instead, he chose to prioritize his own financial gain, betraying the trust placed in him by his clients. The consequences of his actions will be severe, and he will be held accountable for his crimes.

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