A Bessemer man is facing an insurance fraud charge in addition to alleged multiple traffic offenses.
New Wilmington police said Charles E. Phipps III, 45, of Hillsville Road, Bessemer, was riding his motorcycle when they stopped him July 9 on Route 18 in Wilmington Township. At that time, police discovered that Phipps was under a DUI license suspsension and had prior convictions for three DUI violations, three driving-under-suspension violations and two driving-without-a-license violations, all since Sept. 2006.
In May, police added, Phipps was designated as a habitual offender by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, which suspended his driver’s license for an additional five years.
Phipps did not reveal to his insurance company that his license had been suspended, police said. He allegedly used a Florida driver’s license in his name that was free of traffic violations to obtain the required insurance coverage in Pennsylvania.
Police filed the insurance fraud and the traffic charges against Phipps yesterday. He is to be arraigned in Lawrence County Central Court.
