An absurd story, but it’s all true. Four Californians sent car insurance companies videos of a bear destroying their luxury cars: a Rolls-Royce Ghost, a Mercedes G63 AM and a Mercedes E350. But in the end it was a complete disguise to “cheat” insurance policies. The four pocketed 135 thousand euros with this ploy. But they were “pinned” by the police (who found the costume and videos in their homes) and investigated.
The four suspects are Ruben Tamrazian, 26 years old, Ararat Chirkinian, 39 years old, Vahe Muradkhanyan, 32 years old, and Alfiya Zuckerman, 39 years old.. One of the insurance companies involved in the claim, becoming suspicious, launched an investigation into the case, which involved compensation for a Rolls Royce Ghost worth several hundred thousand dollars.
Two elements fueled the suspicions: the insured had explained that a bear had entered the car in Lake Arrowhead, a mountainous region near Los Angeles, and that it had torn the seats and damaged the doors. CCTV footage and photos showing the animal in full action were also provided. But the claw marks on the leather seats were too regular and the brown bear that can be glimpsed in the security footage, made available by the insured themselves, belongs to one species extinct in that area for almost a century.
The images were sent to a Department of Wildlife biologist, who certified “that it was clearly a human in a bear costume”.
Harry Kazakianan experienced insurance fraud investigator, added to BfmTv: “We have come to the conclusion that whoever is inside this vehicle does not move like a bear, but like a human. Let’s say that opening the door and entering the vehicle is very suspicious for a bear. Insurance investigators are trained to spot all types of fraud, including AI scams, but this is unprecedented“. The four protagonists of this absurd story now risk prison.
A man dressed up in a bear costume and scratched cars to get insurance payouts
Four California residents sent insurance companies videos of a wild animal smashing their cars – a Rolls-Royce Ghost, Mercedes G63 AM and Mercedes E350. Turns out they staged the “wild beast” attack… pic.twitter.com/YeSmjPKv2l
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) November 14, 2024
