ROCKINGHAM — A local insurance agent denies accusations that he embezzled more than $1,200.

Mack McKinley Daniels Jr., owner and operator of Daniels Affordable Insurance Service, allegedly misappropriated and embezzled around $1,805.14 in insurance premium funds between Sept. 29 and Nov. 1 of 2014, according to investigators with the N.C. Department of Insurance.

The 46-year-old insurance agent, of Camden Road in Wadesboro, was arrested by investigator Kyle Barbee June 4 and charged with a felony count of embezzlement. He was placed under a $10,000 unsecured bond and is due in court June 18.

“It’s a banking issue,” he told the Daily Journal on Tuesday, “and no clients were harmed by this.”

Daniels said there was an issue transferring funds from the bank to the insurance carrier in a timely manner.

“I’ve been disputing with the carrier and they have dropped (the amount in question) tremendously,” he added.

According to records with the N.C. Department of Insurance, Daniels was first licensed in life and health insurance in 1990 and property and casualty insurance in 2006.

Records show Daniels’ license status as “surrendered with prejudice voluntarily due to enforcement” on March 30 and that he is under regulatory review.

Neither Daniels or his business — which was formed in 2009, according to the N.C. Secretary of State’s Office — have any active appointments from insurance companies and the agency’s license status has not been renewed since March 31, 2012, records show.

The Department of Insurance employs 20 sworn state law enforcement officers who investigate and prosecute claims of insurance and bail bonding fraud, according to a statement from the department.

Since Hamlet native Wayne Goodwin became the insurance commissioner in 2009, criminal investigators have made more than 1,500 arrests, resulting in more than 750 criminal convictions with more than 250 cases currently pending in court.

According to the department, these efforts have delivered more than $72.1 million in restitution and recoveries for victims.

Reach reporter William R. Toler at 910-817-2675 and follow him on Twitter @William_r_Toler.