The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-01-29
ACTION TAKEN ON
SW|NDL|NG CASE
Life Insurance Companies May
Be Prosecuted
RELEASED ON HEAVY BOND
John J. keane, One of the Insurance
Agents Under Arrest, Is Re-
leased Upon Making Bond
For $4,000.

Louisville, January 2S.-Insurance
Commissioner Charlie w. Bell this aft
ernoon held a conference in this city
with four presidents of life insurance
companies which have been losers -
the swindling schemes practiced in
Louisville by insurance solicitors, and
as a result the state of kentucky may
take legal action against two of the
insurance companies for operating in
Kentucky without license. The COM
panies are the Indiana National Life
Insurance company of Indianapolis and
the Commercial Life Insurance COM
pany also of Indianapolis. Repre- senta-
tiyes of these companies declare their
business is legal because they wrote all
their Kentucky business in New AL
bany, Ind, across the river from
Louisville.
Burt 5. New, legal representative OF
Governor Marshall of Indiana. is also
in Louisville investigating the insur-
ance scandal
Although no other arrests were made
today, attorneys for the insurance
companies allege they are finding nu-
merous other instances in which the
three local solicitors under arrest.
Keane, oLeary and Needham, wrote
graveyard insurance. John J. Keane.
one of the men charged with conspi-
racy to defraud the insurance compan-
les was released from Jail on $4,000
bond today.
Rapid Developments Expected.
Rapid developments are expected in
the alleged insurance frauds which
state. officials and officers of the in-
surance companies involved claim will
reveal bold and systematic robberies
of companies in half dozen states.
The laws net it is said, will not be
drawn tight until it further incloses
three prominent Louisville physicians
and a score or more of dummies"
The warrants were sworn out by 8.
c Renick, secretary and treasurer of the
International Life Insurance company OF
Nashville, charging that the three men
under arrest defrauded the insur-
ance companies by various devices by
insuring INDECENT diseased and decrepit
individuals and through collision with
some of the relatives of the applicants,
sharing in the division of the death
claims by submitting perfectly sound per-
sons to physicians for physical examina-
ton, but having the policies made out
in the name OF some other person in pre-
carious health by collision with physi-
clans who supplied the agents with
blanks filled out although no examina-
tions had been made and by other meth
DDS. Mr.. Renlck charged that 100000 or
more had been frsudulently obtained.
His affidayit said the three agents
worked for the following companies:
The Indiana National Life Insurance
company of Indiana, the Independent
Life Insurance company of Nashville,
the Commonwealth Life company of
Kentucky, and the Standard Life Insur-
ance company of Des Moines. Ia.
DR.. w. r. Richards, coroner of Floyd
county, Indiana, and former medical ex-
aIniner for the Indiana National Life In
surance company, said he had signed
certificates of health for applicants for
insurance whom he did not know but
only when he had been assured by agents
of the company that the risk was a
good one.''