Sareen Habeshian
Three men have been sentenced in California for an insurance scam using someone in a bear costume to stage fake attacks on luxury cars.
Viral video handed to insurers as evidence seemed to show a bear in a 2010 Rolls-Royce Ghost in Lake Arrowhead on 28 January 2024. Similar claims were filed on the same date and location for two high-end Mercedes models.
But biologists at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife reviewed the footage and determined it showed a human in a bear suit.
The state insurance department launched "Operation Bear Claw", executing a search warrant and finding a bear outfit in the suspects' home. The fraud involved $141,839 (£105,000) in insurance payments.
Alfiya Zuckerman, 39, Ruben Tamrazian, 26, and Vahe Muradkhanyan, 32, pleaded no contest to felony insurance fraud and were sentenced on Thursday to 180 days in jail, plus two years of supervised probation.
"What may have looked unbelievable turned out to be exactly that - and now those responsible are being held accountable," state insurance commissioner Ricardo Lara said.
California Department of Insurance
