By Howard Koplowitz 

An Alabama insurance agent was taken into custody Monday and charged with fraud and other offenses that resulted in $600,000 in losses for his elderly victims, the state Insurance Department announced Tuesday.

Bret Chappell, a 43-year-old licensed insurance agent who previously worked for ALFA, was booked into the Blount County jail without bond Monday after he was charged with two counts of first-degree insurance fraud, two counts of first-degree financial exploitation of the elderly and two counts of first-degree theft of property by deception -- all felonies, the department said.

The crimes led to $600,000 in losses for Chappell’s victims, the agency said.

The Alabama State Fire Marshal’s Criminal Fraud Bureau, the Blount County District Attorney’s Office and Blount County Sheriff’s Department helped the Insurance Department with the investigation into Chappell.

Alabama insurance agent charged with fraud, financial exploitation of elderly in $600K case