By MARISSA DECHANT
Staff writer
A Titusville man accused of providing false information in a vehicle insurance case waived his preliminary hearing Wednesday in Venango County Central Court.
A criminal complaint filed through district judge Matthew Kirtland’s office said the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General completed an insurance fraud investigation after a vehicle crash last March involving Kenneth Sterling, 32, and Kari Ann Bertolina, 35, of Franklin.
During the investigation, it was found that Sterling filed a claim against Bertolina’s Nationwide Insurance policy on March 15 after being involved in an accident with her that day, the complaint said.
Sterling said Bertolina had been chasing him around Franklin and hit his truck from behind, the complaint said. Sterling said the impact also pushed the front of his truck into an unknown object, the complaint said.
When Bertolina spoke with Nationwide on March 16, she said road conditions made her unable to stop her car, and she hit Sterling’s truck, the complaint said.
Bertolina said she didn’t know Sterling and was unsure how he came to obtain her insurance information, the complaint said.
In an interview with Nationwide on March 20, Sterling said he was able to obtain Bertolina’s insurance information by paying for it with his credit card, the complaint said. He also identified Bertolina as his ex-girlfriend, the complaint said.
Sterling said the accident was intentional on Bertolina’s part, the complaint said.
A special investigator for Nationwide also spoke with Sterling in a subsequent interview, and Sterling clarified that he meant Bertolina was only intentional in that she was following his vehicle closely, the complaint said.
When the investigator asked Sterling if he thought Nationwide would pay for the claim if the accident were intentional, Sterling said no, the complaint said.
A review of Sterling’s call to Venango County 911 found that Sterling had stated his ex-girlfriend was chasing him around and “rammed” into his truck, the complaint said.
Bertolina admitted to providing false information in an attempt to have Nationwide pay the claim after being contacted by Sterling, the complaint said.
Bertolina also said Sterling’s truck didn’t strike an object in front of it, the complaint said.
Sterling was charged with felony counts of false insurance claim, criminal attempt – theft by deception – false impression and insurance fraud.
He remains in the Venango County jail on $15,000 bail.
Bertolina waived her preliminary hearing in October and remains free on $15,000 unsecured bail.
