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Man allegedly violated PFA order when sister made contact with Wilkes-Barre woman

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<p>DUNMORE &#8212; An insurance company manager has been charged with pocketing more than $260,000 from fraudulent insurance claims he allegedly filed against his employer&#8217;s accounts with the Luzerne County Transportation Authority and Wilkes-Barre city.</p><p>Robert Galuska, 61, of Jenkins Township, was arraigned Tuesday in Lackawanna County on charges of theft, receiving stolen property and forgery, according to court papers.</p><p>According to a criminal complaint, Galuska, a branch manager at Excalibur Insurance Management Services, submitted more than 20 false claims between late 2008 and August 2015, each time filing the claims with the LCTA or Wilkes-Barre accounts.</p><p>In an email Wednesday, city spokeswoman Liza Prokop said Mayor Tom Leighton &#8220;stresses that this unfortunate situation will not affect current claims or result in increased insurance premiums.&#8221;</p><p>Excalibur president Charles Volpe said all of the false claims were automobile liability claims. Because the alleged fraudulent activity was spread out across some seven years, Volpe said it did not impact premiums related to either account.</p><p>Volpe said Excalibur reviewed premium data for both accounts and determined price fluctuations in the time period were caused by changes in the number of vehicles insured on either account.</p><p>&#8220;If there had been any spike in premiums, they would have been reimbursed,&#8221; Volpe said.</p><p>Norm Gavlick, interim executive director of LCTA, said he has been assured by Volpe the claims have not affected the authority&#8217;s premiums. Gavlick added, however, that LCTA intends to investigate the accuracy of those assurances.</p><p>The criminal complaint alleges Galuska opened claims and requested checks in advance of documents being signed by claimants &#8212; all of whom, Volpe said, were fictitious with names and addresses similar to Galuska. Cases would be opened and closed within a few days, which the complaint says is never the case in real claims.</p><p>Volpe said when Excalibur employees began to take notice of names they thought were familiar, the company launched an internal investigation.</p><p>&#8220;He probably got a little bit lazy,&#8221; Volpe said of Galuska.</p><p>Reviews of bank and insurance company records indicate Galuska deposited or cashed the checks using a personal savings account he shared with his wife, police say. The checks issued ranged in amount from $6,500 to $15,000, and the amount of fraudulent checks cashed and deposited totaled $266,000.</p><p>Galuska allegedly told insurance company officials on Aug. 26 that he used the city and LCTA accounts because neither has a deductible, explaining that filing claims against accounts with deductibles would have drawn attention to his activities. Excalibur fired Galuska at the same meeting.</p><p>When asked what he used the money for, Galuska would not provide a straight answer, the complaint says. Volpe said he understands much of the money appeared to have been used to make payments on credit cards and to cover costs of landscaping and personal items. Galuska allegedly said no one else was involved in the scheme.</p><p>Volpe said he believes Galuska&#8217;s alleged crimes went unnoticed for so long because of the volume of business Excalibur handles, paying out some $20 million each year.</p><p>Volpe said the allegations against Galuska were shocking, as he considered the 25-year Excalibur veteran a friend and said the man had risen to a level of trust in the company.</p><p>In addition to its policies for LCTA and Wilkes-Barre city, Luzerne County records show Excalibur currently provides the county with its workers-compensation insurance policy.</p><p>Another employee of Excalibur, Thomas P. Gaughan, of Ashley, previously pleaded guilty in October 2010 to a federal charge of withholding information about a crime from investigators.</p><p>Prosecutors said Gaughan, who served a six-month federal prison sentence in the 1990s for his role in an illegal gambling ring while a Luzerne County employee, had attempted to pay a $2,500 bribe to a county commissioner to secure a job for his niece and later lied about it to investigators. He was later sentenced to 18 months&#8217; probation.</p><p>Court records indicate Gaughan, now a vice president with the company, was one of the employees who brought Galuska&#8217;s alleged crimes to the attention of investigators.</p><p>Court records show District Judge Paul Ware scheduled Galuska for a preliminary hearing for Oct. 20 and set his bail at $30,000. Galuska remains jailed at Lackawanna County Prison.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Galuska </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_Galuska_Robert5.jpg</photo0><caption0>Galuska </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By James O&#8217;Malley</p><p>jomalley@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach James O&#8217;Malley at 570-991-6390 or on Twitter @TL_omalley.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Jenkins Twp. man charged with pocketing $266k from false insurance claims against W-B, LCTA