Ex-state insurance chief sentenced to prison for embezzlement

ATLANTA – Former Georgia Insurance Commissioner Jim Beck was sentenced to more than seven years in prison Tuesday for fraud and money laundering, an Atlanta TV station reported.

A federal indictment charged Beck with 37 counts of wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering and tax fraud for embezzling more than $2.5 million from the Georgia Underwriting Association in Suwanee. He served as the association’s manager before being elected insurance commissioner in 2018.

Beck, a Republican, didn’t serve long before Gov. Brian Kemp suspended him after the indictment was handed down in May 2019. However, he has continued to receive his salary of $195,000 a year while on suspension.

The governor subsequently appointed Doraville Police Chief John King to replace Beck. King is seeking a full four-year term next year.

Beck has remained free on bail. However, he has been mostly confined to his home in Carrollton.

The prosecution had sought a 10-year prison sentence for Beck. U.S. District Judge Mark Cohen sentenced him to serve a sentence of 87 months and pay $2.6 million in restitution.