Former Prince Maryland Police Officer Sentenced for Orchestrating Auto Insurance Fraud

A former Prince George’s County police officer has been sentenced to federal prison for his involvement in a sophisticated auto insurance fraud scheme that defrauded insurers of tens of thousands of dollars. The scheme, which ran from August 2018 to February 2020, saw officers and former officers conspire to stage vehicle thefts and submit fraudulent claims, leveraging their positions to create false police reports and legitimize their deceitful actions. The convictions highlight a disturbing pattern of corruption where law enforcement authority was exploited for personal financial gain, impacting insurance companies and potentially the public through increased premiums.

According to information from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, Michael Anthony Owen, Jr., 37, of Accokeek, Maryland, received a six-month federal prison sentence. This will be followed by two years of supervised release, with the initial six months to be served under home detention. In addition to his prison time, Owen has been ordered to pay $17,585 in restitution to the victim of one of his insurance fraud schemes. U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes, along with Special Agent in Charge Jimmy Paul of the FBI Baltimore Field Office and Chief George Nader of the Prince George’s County Police Department (PGPD), announced the sentencing.

Court documents reveal that Owen and Jaron Earl Taylor, a former Anne Arundel County Police Department officer, acted as key figures in this conspiracy. They collaborated with other officers, including Candace Tyler, Conrad D’Haiti, and Davion Percy, to devise a plan that would allow insurance companies to pay off the remaining financing costs on vehicles that owners no longer wished to pay for. The perpetrators reported fictitious losses to insurers, thereby obtaining money or avoiding payments on vehicles that were worth less than the outstanding loan balances. The co-conspirators specifically utilized their roles as police officers to generate false police reports, which they then submitted to insurance companies to substantiate their fraudulent claims and to hinder any subsequent investigations into these false insurance claims.

One notable instance of the scheme involved Owen and Taylor staging the theft of Taylor’s Chevrolet Tahoe in August 2018. Following the submission of a fraudulent police report by Taylor, Owen and Taylor proceeded to dismantle the vehicle and conceal it within a wooded area on Maryland State Highway property near Largo. Taylor then filed a claim with United Services Automobile Association (USAA), which ultimately paid out a total of $38,670 for the alleged loss.

Further elaborating on the extent of the conspiracy, in January 2020, Owen facilitated Conrad D’Haiti’s attempt to avoid paying the outstanding loan balance on a Jaguar XKR. In collaboration with D’Haiti and Davion Percy, Owen orchestrated a plan to fake the vehicle’s theft. D’Haiti parked his Jaguar behind the Marlow Heights Shopping Center, where Percy was serving as police chief. D’Haiti then paid Percy 350 to arrange for another conspirator to tow the vehicle and extensively vandalize it, creating the appearance of a total loss. Candace Tyler subsequently filed the fictitious police report that D’Haiti used to support his claim with Liberty Mutual Insurance. This resulted in Liberty Mutual paying 17,585 to Navy Federal Credit Union, the lienholder of the Jaguar, based on the fraudulent claim.

Additionally, Owen and Taylor were involved in assisting a co-conspirator in disposing of an Infiniti sedan in January 2020. This action was taken to help the co-conspirator evade further payments on the vehicle while on extended overseas duty. The co-conspirator remitted $1,000 to Taylor via CashApp to stage the theft, a sum that Taylor then transferred to Owen. Owen subsequently filed a false stolen vehicle report with the PGPD. Despite efforts to conceal the car’s identity by removing and replacing license plates with those from another vehicle, the car was discovered in the top floor of an apartment complex parking garage in Camp Springs, Maryland. The owner and co-conspirator filed a claim with GEICO, which was ultimately denied due to fraudulent activity.

The legal repercussions for other individuals involved in the scheme have also been significant. In June 2026, Davion Percy was found guilty by a federal jury on one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Jaron Earl Taylor was sentenced in July 2026 to three years of probation, with the first five months served on home detention, for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and was ordered to pay $38,670 in restitution to USAA. Candace Tyler pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and Conrad D’Haiti pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Percy’s sentencing is scheduled for Friday, October 16.

The investigation was a collaborative effort, with U.S. Attorney Hayes commending the FBI and PGPD for their contributions. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Baldwin is prosecuting the case. Residents seeking more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, or resources for reporting fraud can visit justice.gov/usao-md.

Article by Mel Anara, based upon information from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Maryland.

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