Three individuals in California have been sentenced for insurance coverage fraud in a weird rip-off that concerned somebody wearing a bear costume damaging luxurious automobiles.
The California Insurance coverage Division stated the three used an individual in a bear swimsuit to stage pretend assaults inside a Rolls-Royce and two Mercedes in 2024, then submitted fraudulent claims in search of practically $142,000 in payouts from insurance coverage firms. The division referred to as it “Operation Bear Claw.”
A fourth individual faces a court docket listening to in September.
The group is accused of offering a number of movies from the San Bernardino Mountains of a bear transferring contained in the autos to the insurance coverage firms as a part of their harm claims, the division stated. Pictures offered by the insurance coverage division present what gave the impression to be scratches on the seats and doorways.
A California Division of Fish and Wildlife biologist reviewed the footage and concluded it was “clearly a human in a bear suit,” the insurance coverage division stated.
After executing a search warrant, detectives discovered the bear costume within the suspects’ dwelling, the division stated.
Bears breaking into properties or trash cans in the hunt for meals have turn out to be an issue in California from Lake Tahoe within the Sierra right down to the foothill suburbs of Los Angeles, the place some have been recognized to raid fridges and take dips in yard swimming pools and sizzling tubs.
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