Ex-baseball star tried to evade $4,600 bill
January 26, 2015
Ted Lilly
A retired Major League Baseball pitcher who earned nearly $100 million in base salary over a 15-year career tried to fraudulently avoid paying a $4,600 bill, according to a state agency. [KSBY]
Edna Valley resident Ted Lilly, 39, is accused of insurance fraud and faces three felony counts in San Luis Obispo Superior Court. Lilly allegedly purchased insurance for his approximately $200,000 RV after damaging it in March 2014.
The damage amounted to approximately $4,600, said California Department of Insurance spokeswoman Nancy Kincaid. It occurred from Lilly backing the RV into an undisclosed object.
Lilly took the vehicle into a body shop for the estimate on March 19, Kincaid said. He then bought insurance for the RV on or around March 24 and filed the claim several days later.
Progressive Insurance denied Lilly’s claim and red-flagged it as part of a larger operation. About 200 others statewide were arrested or surrendered for similar crimes during the investigation.
The suspects include college professors, soccer moms, grandmothers, college students, a Silicon Valley IT executive and insurance agents, Kincaid said.
Lilly appeared in court last week and pleaded not guilty. He is charged with filing a false insurance claim, making a false statement in support of a claim and failing to disclose a material fact in connection with a claim.
He is represented by attorney James Murphy, who says the retired pitcher is a remarkable human being.
Lilly is due to return to court on Feb. 5. He faces a maximum sentence of five years for the alleged crimes.
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