Man pleads guilty to defrauding tribe through insurance scam

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – A Northern California man has pleaded guilty to defrauding an Indian tribe for millions of dollars as part of a workers’ compensation scam.

The Sacramento Bee reports that 46-year-old Gregory Chmielewski last month pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud. He is accused of taking millions of dollars from the Fort Independence Community of Paiute Indians, in Inyo County.

Chmielewski convinced the tribe to pay for a company that offered discount workers’ compensation coverage by using tribal laws to avoid red tape in the state-run system.

Chmielewski says he siphoned $7.3 million from his company Independent Staffing Solutions of Roseville leaving injured workers without compensation.

As part of his plea agreement he is facing 41 to 51 months when he’s sentenced in April.

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Information from: The Sacramento Bee, http://www.sacbee.com