A former Schuylkill County woman faces felony charges after state authorities say she filed a fraudulent insurance claim for more than $2,000 in property she reported stolen from an apartment she’d been evicted from in Ashland.
Agents with the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigations filed charges against Alyia Adams, 35, now of Trevorton, following an investigation prompted by an insurance fraud referral.
Investigators say Adams obtained a renters insurance policy in July 2024 for an apartment at 723 Centre St. in Ashland. On Oct. 7, 2024, Adams was evicted from the property. A property manager placed her belongings into a storage unit in Saint Clair and provided her with access codes and instructions to retrieve them within 30 days.
On Oct. 10, 2024, Adams admitted to Ashland police that she had been evicted, though she claimed the eviction was wrongful, and officers say she made multiple attempts to re-enter the apartment. On Oct. 13, 2024, Ashland police arrested Adams and her husband for trespassing at the residence, according to investigators.
On Jan. 22, 2025, Adams filed a claim with her insurance company, asserting that more than $2,000 worth of personal property was stolen from the Ashland apartment on Oct. 28, 2024. In a recorded call, Adams told insurance representatives that she delayed reporting the incident because her phone and belongings had been taken.
Insurance representatives flagged the claim for internal investigation due to policy status and suspicious details. During a recorded conversation with an insurance investigator in February 2025, Adams repeatedly denied being evicted. The insurance company confirmed the eviction through Ashland police and property management records before denying the claim on Feb. 20, 2025, citing material misrepresentation and fraud, and referring the case to state authorities.
On July 28 of this year, special agents interviewed Adams at a home on W. Shamokin St. in Trevorton. During a recorded interview, Adams admitted to filing the false claim, according to investigators. Adams told agents she lied because she had a severe drug habit and was attempting to obtain money to cover her losses, fuel her addiction, and secure a new place to live. She acknowledged that she was homeless at the time she submitted the claim.
Adams is charged with third-degree felony counts of filing a false or fraudulent insurance claim and attempted theft by deception.
Adams was arraigned Wednesday before Magisterial District Judge Edward Tarantelli, who released her on $10,000 unsecured bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Sept. 30.
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