3 sentenced after bear costume used in $142K luxury car insurance scam
AP News • • nation
Key Points:
- Three individuals in California were sentenced for orchestrating an insurance fraud scheme involving a person dressed in a bear costume damaging luxury cars to file false claims.
- The scam, dubbed "Operation Bear Claw," involved staged attacks on a Rolls-Royce and two Mercedes in 2024, with fraudulent claims totaling nearly $142,000.
- The defendants pleaded no contest to felony insurance fraud, received weekend jail sentences followed by probation, and two were ordered to pay over $50,000 in restitution.
- A fourth suspect is scheduled for a court hearing in September, and evidence including videos and the bear costume was seized during a search warrant execution.
- A wildlife biologist confirmed that the footage submitted to insurance companies showed a human in a bear suit, not an actual bear.
