Eight charged with fraud - Men accused of falsely registering cars upstate to save on insurance

ALBANY -- Eight downstate men were arrested and charged Monday with insurance fraud for allegedly using upstate addresses, including one in East Berne, to register a fleet of vehicles used exclusively in New York City.

The alleged scam resulted in the eight men being able to reduce their auto insurance premiums by nearly $1.5 million by falsely registering their vehicles in counties where commercial insurance rates are relatively low.

"These cases hit everyone right in the pocketbook," said Albany County District Attorney David Soares in a statement. "Any time insurance companies are defrauded like this, law-abiding citizens pay the price."

Superintendent of Insurance Howard Mills said "aggressive fraud prosecution" has helped New Yorkers save half a billion dollars in insurance premiums this year.

Soares praised the interagency cooperation that led to the arrests, lauding the New York City Police Department, the state Departments of Motor Vehicles and Insurance as well as the New York Automobile Insurance Plan and prosecutors in his own financial crimes bureau.

Arrested Monday were Peter J. Albamo, 48, of Brooklyn; Richard Shavel, 44, of Monroe, Orange County; Harris J. Thorpe, 34, and Petar Bojilov, 30, both of the Bronx; Roben Allonce, 46, Zeev Lichtick, 53, and Roman Ashurov, 35, all of Brooklyn; and Winston A. McLean, 59, of Rosedale, Queens County.