Emmett man sentenced to probation, jail for insurance fraud

Third District Judge Susan Wiebe sentenced 39-year-old Chris Kienitz on Friday after he admitted to committing insurance fraud.

Kienitz, of Emmett, was ordered to serve four years in prison, but the judge suspended the sentence and placed him on four years of probation. Kienitz was ordered to serve 180 days in the Gem County Jail with 130 days suspended.

Kienitz admitted to providing a false statement to an insurance company. An investigation revealed that in November 2014, Kienitz filed a claim with Progressive Insurance for an accident involving his vehicle.

He reportedly told Progressive that he had recently acquired the vehicle and that he’d forgotten to add it to his policy, according to the Idaho Attorney General’s Office.

Investigators determined that Kienitz had acquired the vehicle several months prior and that the accident occurred before Kienitz had called to add the vehicle to his policy. The claim was denied.

Pursuant to the plea agreement, Kieintz agreed to pay $990 in restitution to the Idaho Department of Insurance.

This story was originally published June 30, 2017 at 4:04 PM with the headline "Emmett man sentenced to probation, jail for insurance fraud."