(Courtesy: California Department of Insurance)
LOS ANGELES - Officials with the California Department of Insurance allege that a bear attack incident in the state was actually an insurance scheme.
In a statement released Nov. 13, officials with the agency say four people in the Los Angeles area have been arrested in connection with the alleged scheme. They were identified as:
- Ararat Chirkinian, 39
- Vahe Muradkhanyan, 32
- Ruben Tamrazian, 26
- Alfiya Zuckerman, 39
Department of Insurance officials said the suspects claimed on Jan. 28 that a bear entered their 2010 Rolls-Royce Ghost in the Lake Arrowhead area, and caused interior damage to the vehicle.
"They provided video footage to their insurance company, which showed the alleged bear in the vehicle," read a portion of the statement. "The Department’s investigation began after an insurance company suspected fraud."
Investigators say they later determined the bear was actually a person in a bear costume.
"Detectives found two additional insurance claims with two different insurance companies, for the suspects with the same date of loss and at the same location," read a portion of the statement. "Each of those claims involved two different vehicles, a 2015 Mercedes G63 AMG and a 2022 Mercedes E350, and the suspects again appeared to use a bear costume to make it appear that a bear also entered and damaged those vehicles. They provided the video footage to the other insurance companies as well to substantiate their claims."
According to Kelly Blue Book, the typical listing price for a used 2010 Rolls-Royce Ghost is around $82,000. A fair purchase price was not available because some vehicles have too few sales to establish such a price.
Per the statement, a Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist also reviewed the bear video, and the biologist "also opined it was clearly a human in a bear suit."
When investigators served a search warrant at the suspects' home, they found a bear costume.
"The insurance companies were defrauded of $141,839, because of the alleged fraud committed by the suspects," read a portion of the statement.
The four suspects are accused of insurance fraud and conspiracy.