Investigators seek additional victims of alleged fraud by former O.C. insurance agent

ORANGE, Calif. — Formerly licensed insurance agent Gregory Magedman, 77, of Fullerton, appeared in court today on one felony count of grand theft by embezzlement after he allegedly secured insurance for a consumer but failed to give the payment to the insurance company, keeping the money for personal use and leaving the consumer uninsured.

Records indicate there may be additional victims and the investigation is on-going. Anyone who believes they may be a victim should contact the Department at 714-712-7656. This comes years after Magedman’s license was revoked by the California Department of Insurance for a previous criminal charge. 

In November 2011, the Department issued a suspension order against Magedman due to a criminal investigation against him for embezzling consumer premium funds. In February 2012, Magedman pleaded guilty to one count of grand theft in the Orange County Superior Court. The Department immediately revoked his insurance license.

These current charges arise from a different investigation, which began in 2018 after the Department received a complaint alleging that Magedman acted as an insurance agent without a valid license. The victim purchased a commercial liability policy for their truck and trailer from Magedman and provided Magedman with the down payment and financed the policy with a premium finance company. The insurance company’s managing general agent received the financed premium portion of the policy, but Magedman failed to submit the retail broker’s portion of the premium causing the policy to cancel.

The investigation found that Magedman transacted insurance with no valid license to do so and pocketed the unearned premium on the policy after it was cancelled for non-payment.

The Department urges consumers to check the license status of their agent or contact the Department of Insurance at 800-927-4357 if they suspect they are victims of insurance fraud.

Magedman self-surrendered and was arraigned on March 16, 2023. This case is being prosecuted by the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.

Art Pedroza Editor

Our Editor, Art Pedroza, worked at the O.C. Register and the OC Weekly and studied journalism at CSUF and UCI. He has lived in Santa Ana for over 30 years and has served on several city and county commissions. When he is not writing or editing Pedroza specializes in risk control and occupational safety. He also teaches part time at Cerritos College and CSUF. Pedroza has an MBA from Keller University.

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