Convicted Tulsa Insurance Agent Faces New Theft Charges

A former Tulsa insurance agent with a prior conviction for embezzlement was charged this week with 11 counts of obtaining money by false pretense and one count of violation of the Oklahoma Producer License Act.

In a news release from the Oklahoma Insurance Department, investigators found that Cheryl Salmon, 57, continued to act as an insurance agent after her license was revoked in 2011, collecting premium payments and deposited them into her personal account.

Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John Doak said the total amount of premiums paid to Salmon is more than $150,000.

"It is critically important to protect every insurance-buying consumer in the state of Oklahoma," said John Doak. "This is a particularly egregious case and I compliment the OID's Anti-Fraud Unit for, once again, putting a stop to Ms. Salmon's scheme. I also want to thank the Tulsa County District Attorney's Office, the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office and the Tulsa Police Department for its help on this case."

Doak said in May, his department's Anti-Fraud Unit received a complaint that Salmon was conducting business as an insurance producer, even though her license had been revoked after being charged with embezzlement. Court records show Salmon pleaded guilty and received a five-year deferred sentence at the time.

Doak says Salmon's latest victims include at least 11 different companies, all of which were either underinsured or not insured at all. One uninsured victim suffered significant damage in the May 20th tornado, while another paid Salmon more than $75,000.

Court records show the deferral of Salmon's 2011 sentence was revoked in September and a judge sentenced her to five years in prison.

Salmon is being held in the Tulsa County Jail without bond awaiting a court appearance on the new charges.