In 2005, were called about a stolen trailer near the intersection of Landau Drive and Avignon Court.
Joseph Paul Eberwine, 34, later collected more than $16,000 from Integrity Mutual Insurance for the trailer and its contents.
But in late 2010 or early 2011, his ex-wife overheard him talking about how he staged the theft, according to the criminal complaint, and he now faces a felony insurance fraud charge that could land him in prison for up to 10 years.
Eberwine’s ex-wife heard him talking to his brother about how he faked the theft and sold the trailer to St. Croix Exteriors, the complaint says. In August 2011 she called St. Croix Exteriors and spoke with the owner, who told her he had purchased Eberwine’s equipment.
Investigators later spoke with the owner of St. Croix Exteriors, who told them he bought the trailer from an unknown individual in the parking lot of Fleet Farm in Hudson, Wis., according to the complaint. Authorities then linked a trailer found at his home to the one reported stolen by Eberwine.
Eberwine told police in November 2011 that he had sub-contracted jobs to the St. Croix Exteriors owner, the complaint says.
He could also be hit with a $20,000 fine.
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