An Australian man living in Wisconsin has been charged with fraud for allegedly filing hundreds of thousands of dollars in parcel insurance claims on non-existent packages.

Scott Reaston, 40, has been charged with seven counts of mail fraud, one count of wire fraud, and two counts of money laundering, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Wisconsin.

An indictment by a federal grand jury alleges that Reaston filed phony insurance claims with the Parcel Insurance Plan (PIP). PIP provides coverage for loss or damage to packages delivered by the US Postal Service and private couriers. Authorities allege that between February 2013 and July 2015, Reaston submitted false claims to PIP totaling more than $480,000. He received payment for $364,183 on those claims, prosecutors say.

Reaston also allegedly created accounts in several names at Stamps.com, used those accounts to purchase postage for packages, and then purchased shipping insurance through PIP for those packages. He then allegedly filed claims which falsely said that cell phones sold on Amazon Marketplace were lost, damaged or shorted during delivery. Reaston allegedly backed up the claims with forged documents, including phony purchase orders and email chains with fictional customers.

If convicted, Reaston could face up to 20 years in federal prison on each mail and wire fraud charge and up to 10 years for each money-laundering charge.


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