An employer in Raleigh, N.C., was arrested and charged with willfully terminating a group health plan, costing two employees a total of more than $2,000 in unpaid claims.

Paul Joseph Stafford, 43, owner of Ideas Architecture and New Ideas, allegedly canceled his employees’ Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina and UnitedHealthcare group health insurance policies without providing the required 45-day notice, according to North Carolina Department of Insurance investigators.

At least two employees accrued health care costs totaling more than $2,000 from the time their coverage was canceled until they received cancellation letters from BCBSNC in June.

Both businesses have been shuttered.

Stafford was processed at the Wake County Public Safety Center and placed under a $3,000 secured bond.