Manhattan Beach fraud fugitive discovered in Mexico
From Easy Reader
"After skipping court dates and eluding authorities for nearly six months, a former Manhattan Beach woman convicted of 29 fraud-related felony counts
is finally behind bars.
Wanda Lee Ann Podgurski, 60, was discovered on the night of July 3 in Rosarito Beach, Mexico, just 16 miles south of the U.S. border, said Steve
Walker, a spokesman for the San Diego County District Attorney's Office. The following day, she was brought to the San Diego County Sheriff's
Department, where she is currently being held in custody.
Podgurski pleaded not guilty Monday in San Diego Superior Court on a new charge of failing to appear while on bail. If convicted, she faces an
additional two years and eight months on top of her original sentence, Walker said.
In her absence last month, a judge ordered Podgurski to 20 years and four months in state prison and ordered her to pay more than $1 million in fines
and restitution.
The U.S. Marshals have been searching for Podgurski since her no-show in San Diego County court on Jan. 17. In her absence, a judge convicted
Podgurski of 29 felony counts, including insurance fraud, perjury, grand theft from Amtrak Railroad Retirement Board and tax evasion after a two-month
jury trial. Charges also included white collar enhancements involving taking more than $500,000.
Upon Podgurski's failure to appear, the judge revoked her $500,000 bond and issued a no-bail bench warrant.
In August of 2006, Podgurski, a former Amtrak employee, claimed that a slip-and-fall in her home left her so severely disabled that she required an
in-home caregiver for everyday assistance.
Investigations revealed that during the time she was allegedly disabled, Podgurski took vacations including a 16-day tour to China with her boyfriend,
as well as trips to the Dominican Republic, New York, Seattle, Boston, Fort Lauderdale, according to San Diego County prosecutors.
According to a 2010 report from the California Department of Insurance, Podgurski, between 2004 and 2006, purchased long-term care insurance policies
from Prudential Group Insurance, Kanawha Insurance Company, Unum Life Insurance Company and Metropolitan Insurance Company.
She also had disability income policies with Balboa Insurance Group and Reassure America Life Insurance Company, according to the report. Upon her
August 2006 claim of injury, she allegedly filed claims with all six insurance companies for benefits, and also filed a disability claim with Amtrak,
her employer at the time. She allegedly also filed fraudulent claims for benefits with the United States Railroad Retirement Board.
Between 2006 and 2009, Podgurski received $626,395.15 in disability and long-term care benefits, according to the report.
Walker denied reports stating that authorities traced her whereabouts using a Twitter account that appears to be hers. Under Twitter name
@wanda_podgurski, the user on June 5 wrote, "Catch me if you can," and on June 27, "Help find me before I con anyone else..."
"I don't know if we ever confirmed that it was her," Walker said. He said he could not speak on how law enforcement tracked her down.
Next Wednesday, Podgurski will return to court for her readiness hearing, where prosecutors will decide whether to go into trial."
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow mindedness.”
—Mark Twain
\"La vida es dura, el corazon es puro, y cantamos hasta la madrugada.” (Life is hard, the heart is pure and we sing until dawn.)
—Kirsty MacColl, Mambo de la Luna
\"Alea iacta est.\"
—Julius Caesar
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