WASHINGTON — A Waldorf woman was sentenced to two years in federal prison after prosecutors said she orchestrated a four-year insurance fraud scheme involving fellow Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority employees and more than $362,000 in fraudulent AFLAC claims.
Michelle Shropshire, 55, of Waldorf, was sentenced Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026, in U.S. District Court to 24 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras also ordered Shropshire to pay $362,035.14 in restitution to AFLAC and entered a forfeiture money judgment of $80,520.36. Federal prosecutors had sought a 41-month prison sentence.
According to federal court documents, Shropshire worked as a train operator for WMATA and spent approximately four years helping herself and other employees submit fraudulent disability and health care claims to AFLAC.
Prosecutors said the claims were based on injuries that never occurred. Shropshire allegedly prepared and submitted fraudulent claims for herself and her co-conspirators, fabricated medical records and forged the signatures of real doctors to support the claims.
The employees continued working and collecting their regular WMATA paychecks during periods when they claimed they were disabled, according to prosecutors.
In exchange for preparing the fraudulent claims, Shropshire received kickbacks equal to approximately 20% of each co-conspirator’s insurance payout.
Federal authorities said Shropshire was responsible for at least $362,035.14 in fraudulent claims and personally received approximately $80,520.36 from the scheme.
“Michelle Shropshire turned her own coworkers into accomplices, forged the signatures of doctors who had nothing to do with her lies, and built a four-year fraud operation on the backs of injured workers,” U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro said.
Pirro said health care fraud affects policyholders who pay insurance premiums and pledged that federal prosecutors would continue pursuing similar cases.
Shropshire’s co-defendant, Harlisha Jones, previously pleaded guilty to the same conspiracy charge and was scheduled for sentencing Aug. 6. Six other WMATA employees have also pleaded guilty to related health care fraud offenses stemming from the investigation.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI Washington Field Office and the WMATA Office of Inspector General. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian P. Kelly and Diane G. Lucas.
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